Danganronpa: Brightmere Mysteries
by WritersMind15
Summary: Eighteen students find themselves at a wonderful amusement park incorporated in great ships that now sail through the sea. Despite the advertised promises of fun and glee, the students are soon told that if they wish to leave, they must kill each other and get away with it. (SYOC CLOSED)
1. Relaxation from Death (1)

Masashi Kousaki was sure that he had fallen asleep while at his desk. It had been only a bit after dinner, and he had not felt unusually sleepy. And yet, despite his good enough memory, he could remember little from that point on, and now, he was in a room that he did not recognize.

"Where am I?" he asked himself. He had found himself lying down on a king-sized bed, and when he rose, he could not but feel amazed at the greatness and richness that the room gave off. The wallpaper was of a calming orange hue, carrying a fancy floral pattern; the chairs had red cushioning, placed neatly by the desks and the walls; and the lamps and wooden furniture looked so dear that someone of his station could hardly afford such things. And there was even a small but fancy-looking chandelier hanging from the ceiling. He was only what one might call an everyman, and yet he felt a bit like a king.

If this were a dream, then it certainly felt too real. Masashi looked around, and thankfully, there was a mirror by what appeared to be a closet. In this situation, the first thing that anyone would do was to confirm whether anything had happened to his looks. For all he knew, someone could have drawn something weird on his face.

The one thing that he was sure was that nothing odd had happened to his appearance; he still had his slightly messy black hair, and his blue eyes showed no signs of exhaustion or injury. And his clothes appeared to be his; he wore a gray jacket over a white shirt, and his lower half was covered by a pair of black pants. It was the same outfit that he had worn earlier and that he usually wore whenever not going to school.

"That's a relief…" Masashi said before looking around some more. Though in an unknown situation, he found himself remarkably calm about this; usually, someone who found himself in an unknown room would be panicking and looking for a way out right away.

_Maybe it's the room's fancy atmosphere that calms me_, Masashi thought. If this were a dirtier and shabbier room, then he would feel no urge to stay here any longer.

He looked at the desk by the wall that was opposite to the bed. On it was a blue tablet that had a logo on it. It showed a small drawing of a ship sailing across the sea on a bright day, and a few words were put right below the drawing.

"Brightmere Mirthyard," Masashi read, unsure as to how it was related to his situation. Could it be that he was at Brightmere Mirthyard? It certainly sounded like a place's name, after all. Now that he thought about it, it sounded like something he had heard of before, but what exactly it was he could not recall.

The switch to the tablet was on the right side. Once he turned it on, the screen showed a blue background, and clean white words popped up.

"Welcome to Brightmere Mirthyard, Masashi Kousaki," it said, the words neatly arranged. "We hope that you will have a fun time here."

_Fun time?_ Masashi thought. _Is this a place of entertainment of some kind?_

The background then changed to show a drawn picture of the sea. There were five icons available: Maps, Profiles, Rules and Regulations, Notes, and Settings.

_Profiles?_ Masashi raised his brows. He could understand the other four options, but what was the Profiles section meant to show him? He clicked it at once and let out a small gasp; what appeared before him was none other than an image of him. He was looking right at the camera, showing a kind smile and wearing his usual outfit. It listed a few details about him as well:

**Height: 5'7''**

**Weight: 125 lbs.**

**Chest: 32''**

**Blood Type: A**

**D.O.B.: June 25**

**Likes: Comics, games**

**Dislikes: Horror films**

And then there was the last note:

**Notes: Ultimate Lucky Student**

Masashi looked hard at the title given him. According to this, he was deemed an Ultimate, and Ultimates were those who were incredibly talented at certain subjects. But he was simply an average student, so like many others, he was no Ultimate. If truth were told, he was all right with it, but there was no denying the slight envy that arose within him whenever someone started talking about Ultimates.

But to see himself have such a title as this left him confused. How was he in any way a lucky student? It was not as if he had bad luck, but to be lucky was not a quality that his peers knew him for.

It was then that he noticed what was near the top of the screen: a row of eighteen icons, one of which was his. The icon showed his face drawn in a pixel-like style, as if it were from a game. The other icons, however, were only question marks, however; presumably, there were seventeen others here as well.

"I wonder who they could be," Masashi mumbled as he left the Profiles section. It was then that he wondered how good it was that he was most likely not alone here. On one hand, it meant that he had other people to help him figure out what was going on; on the other hand, there was no telling what kind of people the seventeen were.

Masashi tried clicking on the Maps icon, only to find that it forbade him from going on. It was the same for the Rules and Regulations and Notes icons. The Settings section only let him adjust the tablet's brightness and color, so it was of little use to him right now.

It was then that he saw that on the wall to the bed's left was a door. It seemed to be the only way out of this room. Seeing that staying here likely would get him nowhere, and prodded by his curiosity about this place, Masashi thought to leave.

_Time to see what Brightmere Mirthyard is all about,_ he thought as he opened the door.

* * *

**Hello, everyone! This is my first fanfic, and seeing how popular SYOCs are here, I thought that I could try writing one. I picked the setting of an amusement park on the sea since I thought that it would be cool to write a game where it takes place in an amusement park, but I wanted to make it a bit more special as well by combining it with a ship setting.**

**The rules for SYOC submissions:**

**1\. Send your submissions through PMs only.**

**2\. Send each character separately. Put the subject line in this format: [Brightmere, character's full name, talent]**

**3\. You may submit up to three characters. I am open to accepting any number of your characters, but keep in mind that even if I pick one of your characters, it is not guaranteed that I will include your other character(s) as well.**

**4\. I trust that you will not submit characters that you have already submitted to other stories.**

**5\. The earlier you submit, the likelier your characters will make it into the story. And the more effort you put in your submissions, the likelier I am to accept them.**

**6\. I prefer that the characters be Japanese, but non-Japanese character submissions are allowed, as long as you give a good reason behind them.**

**7\. This story makes no mention of Hope's Peak Academy and the Ultimate Academy at all, so make sure that your characters should have nothing to do with them.**

* * *

**Submissions (organized in alphabetical order)**

**Male: 15**

**Female: 18**

**Ultimate Actress**

**Ultimate Archaeologist**

**Ultimate Art Critic**

**Ultimate Celesta Player**

**Ultimate Chanteuse**

**Ultimate Cheerleader**

**Ultimate Clown**

**Ultimate Cold Case Detective**

**Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer**

**Ultimate Con Artist**

**Ultimate Dog Trainer**

**Ultimate Dystopia Novelist**

**Ultimate Figure Skater**

**Ultimate Flamenco Dancer**

**Ultimate Gardener**

**Ultimate Hacker**

**Ultimate Historical Novelist**

**Ultimate Majorette**

**Ultimate Nun**

**Ultimate Orator**

**Ultimate Patissier**

**Ultimate Phantom Thief**

**Ultimate Phenologist**

**Ultimate Potato Farmer**

**Ultimate Profiler**

**Ultimate Psychologist**

**Ultimate Pyrotechnician**

**Ultimate Reporter**

**Ultimate Shooter**

**Ultimate Spirit Channeler**

**Ultimate Storyteller**

**Ultimate Stripper**

**Ultimate Waiter**

* * *

**Cast**

**Males:**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki - Ultimate Lucky Student**

**2\. ****Sorao Mineta - Ultimate Celesta Player (TheRoseShadow21)**

**3\. ****Takumi Takamitsu - Ultimate Storyteller (Abitat Eco)**

**4\. ****Abraham Zargari - Ultimate Waiter (Shirasaur)**

**5\. ****Tanjiro Urata - Ultimate Historical Novelist (TheRoseShadow21)**

**6\. ****Haruyuki Kanagawa - Ultimate Art Critic (Scissor-Snipper)**

**7\. ****Arashi Seiya - Ultimate Pyrotechnician (mandipokemon)**

**8\. ****Atsushi Morokuzu - Ultimate Archaeologist (emilio. rubilar. 75)**

**9\. ****Murphy O'Hagan - Ultimate Potato Farmer (aidanator800)**

**Females: **

**1\. ****Hikari Fey - Ultimate Spirit Channeler (NSPunny)**

**2\. ****Haruka Minami - Ultimate Clown (BubblesOfTheNine)**

**3\. ****Futaba Inoshishi - Ultimate Figure Skater (Prince PokePersona)**

**4\. ****Maiha Hanazawa - Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer (RioA)**

**5\. ****Mari Anzai - Ultimate Phenologist (TheRoseShadow21)**

**6\. ****Faye Nirigiri - Ultimate Patissier (Ziggymia123)**

**7\. ****Hikari Shinto - Ultimate Nun (TigerWarrior1998)**

**8\. ****Sayua Tomi - Ultimate Cheerleader (Other Senpai)**

**9\. ****"Red Mask" - Ultimate Phantom Thief (NSPunny)**

**For the one who sent me the Ultimate Archaeologist, I had to put spaces in the username since the editor kept deleting everything before the ".75".**

**Anyway, I was very impressed by the various submissions that I had gotten, and they were all pretty interesting to read, to say the least! That is why it was pretty difficult to choose which characters to use. It took me much longer than I had thought to finalize my choices. **


	2. Relaxation from Death (2)

**Prologue: Relaxation from Death**

"Wh-What the…?"

The first thing that Masashi saw after opening the door was a garden of sundry flowers and shrubs. The garden covered the whole floor, so there was no space that was not covered by grass. Sunlight brightened the sight, giving it an awesome feeling of tranquility, and from here, he could see that on the ceiling was a great enough hole to let him see the shining blue heavens. It was only the gray metallic walls that destroyed the illusion that this was simply a well-kept garden.

Wondering at the sight, Masashi walked around. Despite the colorful sight, it gave him no answers as to where he was and what had befallen him. Wherever he might be, it seemed to be a rather rich and lavish place that was rather clean and well maintained. And yet, he could not help but feel a bit uneasy; lovely though it was to behold this, the want to see whether there were others here still remained. If he did not know whether he was alone here, then there was no enjoying this.

There were exactly nine doors on each side of the hall. Each held a sign that showed a pixelated drawing of a person, presumably that of the room's owner. Even his room had such a sign, the drawing's face being the same as his icon in the notepad. In any case, he recognized none of the seventeen other faces. Were any of these people here in this building right now?

Going through the garden, he at last saw someone standing by a tree. It was a boy who had short messy hair, a fringe falling over his right eye, his ears pierced as well. He wore a simple white jacket along with a blue T-shirt and a blue pair of jeans. Altogether, with his lean build and clothing style, Masashi thought him to be one of those pretty boys who attracted a lot of female fans. The boy appeared to be looking at nothing in particular.

"Uh, excuse me?" Masashi said to catch his attention, after which the boy eyed him, a mix of interest and carefulness on his face.

"Ah, hey there. You're wondering what's going on here, aren't you?" he said, his voice light and friendly. "Well, so am I. It's a complete mystery to us all."

"'Us all'?" Masashi said.

"Yeah. The others and I woke up a while ago, and now we're looking all over the place to see what's going on." The boy then flashed Masashi a small smile. "Well, I don't remember a thing about what happened to me last night. Same for you, right?"

Masashi nodded, thinking it a bit weird that the boy sounded rather carefree and unconcerned about their current predicament. For all he knew, they could have been kidnapped and put in some unknown place far from human civilization. Still, at least he was taking this well and not at all panicking. "So, uh, who are you, first of all?"

The boy let out a small chuckle as he fiddled with his hair fringe. "The name's **Sorao Mineta**. I'm what they call the **Ultimate Celesta Player**."

"Celesta?"

"Yeah. It's an instrument like the piano," Sorao said. "You've probably heard it before, even if you don't know its name. But you know, I'm not too surprised that you don't know much about it. Lots of people say they don't the first time I mention it. Maybe if we have time later, I can play you a short piece."

"Ah, well, I wouldn't mind."

From what he could tell, Sorao seemed to be one of those guys that just wanted to have a nice time with everyone. He was the kind of guy that did not think too hard about his plans, preferring to go through it unready.

"So what about you?" Sorao asked. "What's your name?"

"Oh, my name's **Masashi Kousaki**," he answered. "I'm… the **Ultimate Lucky Student**."

It was weird to introduce himself like this, now that he apparently had a talent, especially a rather questionable one. But since it was usual for Ultimates to do such a thing, he would just have to get used to it.

"Ultimate Lucky Student? You must've worked really hard for it, buddy," Sorao said jokingly. "So when did you get the notice for it?"

"Uh, well, to tell you the truth, I don't know."

"Huh?" Sorao looked askance at him. "What do you mean, you don't know? Have you, what, forgotten the date or something?"

"I…" Masashi did not find it easy to find the right words for it. "I don't remember ever getting this talent. When I woke up, the tablet I found called me so."

"Huh… Is that so?" Sorao looked at him more closely. "Hmm… So do you, what, have lots of luck or something?"

"That's what the name suggests, though I can't find myself proud of it. I mean… _luck_? I'm not sure what kind of talent that is..."

Sorao glanced elsewhere for a moment, appearing to be in deep thought, before he smiled once more. "You know, it's not all bad. When I take a look at you, you look like an ordinary guy. But not everyone has good luck, and if it's official that you have it, well, there's got to be something special about you, right?"

"If you put it that way…" Masashi gladdened a little. He would have never thought of it like that. Something told him that he could get along well with Sorao. "By the way, you said earlier that the others were looking around right now."

"Yup. I'm supposed to be looking here," Sorao answered. Despite that, he seemed to be taking things rather slowly; after all, when Masashi had seen him, he had been doing nothing. "In fact, you should go around and introduce yourself to the others. I get the feeling it's best that we know one another more. In the meantime, I'll be here."

Finding it to be a good idea, Masashi bade Sorao goodbye for now and kept his way through the garden. Though still confused, he felt much more at ease, now that it was clear that he was not the only one in this weird situation.

The garden soon came to an end, after which the small remaining portion of the hallway led him to a metal staircase that went upwards. By the stairs, however, stood a girl who had short neat hair and had a slightly pale complexion. Her dark-green eyes were decorated with black eyeliner, and her lips were adorned with very slight blue gloss. She wore a dark-blue and light skater dress, a bright blue bow sash around her waist. Underneath her dress appeared to be a black leotard, and covering her legs were dark gray stockings wrapped with a blue ribbon. Everything about her looked exquisite but seemed to require much effort to get into and certainly looked not at all fitting for casual settings.

"Ah, how pleasing this sight is to the eye…" she said, her voice very calm and clear. She was staring at a group of tulips by her and had her back turned toward Masashi. "I do not believe that I have this in my garden."

"Uh, hello?" Masashi said, hoping to catch her attention.

"Yes, I do wonder where the owner obtained the flowers," she continued. "Something about them simply captivates me."

"Excuse me?" Masashi said.

"The tulips would go well with the sunflowers that the gardener grew the other day," she went on. "It would be such a lovely sight to see on the early mornings and afternoons."

At this point, there was no getting her to notice him through talking. Masashi gently poked her on the back, after which she turned around and let out a small gasp.

"Oh! I apologize greatly for not having noticed you," she said, still keeping her prim attitude. "How long have I inconvenienced you?"

"Not that long, really," he answered. Even for an apology, she sounded rather formal, as if he were her better or something. "It's no trouble at all."

"Oh… I am pleased to hear that," she said. "I do not believe that we've met. My name is **Futaba Inoshishi**, the **Ultimate Figure Skater**. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

_Hmm… A figure skater..._

That was rather unexpected for someone who came off as rather uptight. He could kind of see it in her, but even then, he would expect someone a bit more "ordinary"; she sounded nothing like a girl that he would see on the street.

"Nice to meet you, too," he said. "I've got to say, you look rather, uh, fancy."

"But of course," Futaba answered, not losing her composure. "I am from a very wealthy family, after all. It is only expected that I dress as is fitting of my status. In fact, it is I that ought to be surprised, for you seem not to recognize my family's name. Have you not heard of Inoshishi Enterprises?"

Now that she mentioned it, it did sound a bit familiar, but he could not remember when he had heard it.

"Sorry, I haven't. Is it a business company or something?"

Futaba let out a small sigh. Though her complexion did not change, he could see in her eyes a mix of astonishment and surprise.

"Inoshishi Enterprises is a business conglomerate that is rather famous worldwide," she said, keeping up her formality. "It works in various fields such as electronics, finance, real estate, transportation, and so forth. Need I go on?"

"No, no, not at all!" Masashi said, amazed that she could say all of that all in one breath. "It's very impressive that your family's that well-off."

"As should be expected of my father, who worked very hard to earn his wealth," she said.

"By the way, you said that you were a figure skater. How did you come to be one?"

"The inspiration came from my mother," she answered. "I simply followed her footsteps after I saw a few pictures of her in her prime."

Even though the topic was about her talent, she sounded nearly as uptight and uncaring as she had been the whole time. Perhaps it was simply her way of speaking, but something about it came off as somewhat pompous, as if everything that she said were meant to be obvious.

"But enough about me. I believe it's your turn to introduce yourself."

"Oh, right." Masashi then told her who he was and what his talent was. It sounded less weird to him the second time.

"I see," she said, her expression unchanged. "Is that all?"

Masashi sensed that she already found him uninteresting, even after he had told her that he had no idea how he had come to be given his talent.

"Now please leave me be," she said. "I wish to have some time by myself here. I have many matters to contemplate."

She then turned around, paying her attention to the tulips once more. Though a bit shocked that she had suddenly ended the conversation like that, Masashi found it pointless to make a fuss over it and so parted ways with her, heading up the nearby stairs.

This floor was also covered in grass, but this time, there were far fewer flowers and trees, and there were fewer doors on each side of the hall. Moreover, from what he could tell, the hall led to a much greater room that also looked like a garden, and a stream of water seemed to be running there.

Standing in the hall to the right was a young man with shaggy black hair and tan skin. He wore a white button-down shirt along with a black tie, a black pair of pants, and a clean black pair of shoes. He also had a belt that had many hooks holding sundry things such a notepad, knives, and pens. Altogether, it gave him the appearance of a waiter, especially one of a high-class restaurant. His arms crossed, the man appeared to be looking at nothing in particular.

"Uh, hello?" Masashi said.

"What?" the man said, scowling. Already, Masashi could sense animosity from him, as if he were but a pest to squash. Moreover, despite the man's foreign appearance, he sounded like any normal Japanese youth.

"I only want to talk to you a bit," Masashi said as politely as he could before he introduced himself.

"Oh, is that so?" the man said. "The name's **Abraham Zargari**. They call me the **Ultimate Waiter**. Now piss off."

_Wh-What?_ Masashi looked at him with much astonishment. _Has he just said that?_

"Are you deaf? I said, piss off," he said, his scowl widening. "Or are you asking yourself why I'm such a jerk?"

"Well… yeah. I thought a waiter would be much politer."

"Yes, but that's the thing. I'm not working right now," Abraham said. "This is my off time, and right now, I can enjoy being as much a jerk as I can."

"But why?" Masashi said. It confused him even more that the man was self-aware of how off-putting he sounded.

"So that people like you won't talk to me, that's why," Abraham said, sounding rather proud of himself. "Now piss off."

"But before I do, could I just ask you one question?" Masashi said.

Abraham sighed. "If it makes you go away faster, all right. What is it?"

"Well, I was wondering whether you were from another land, that's all."

"That's what you want to ask about?" Abraham said. "I suppose it's only natural. I was born in Iran, but my family moved to Japan when I was 2. I have no recollection of my short time there, so don't even fucking think about asking me about it. Got it?"

Seeing that the man was in no mood for any more talking, Masashi nodded and bade him goodbye, to which the man responded by not saying anything. He was definitely not a man that he would like to hang around with, though it intrigued him why he did not like to talk to people, especially when he took into account his occupation. But that was a question for another time. Masashi headed into the door right next to the waiter.

The room was nothing like what Masashi would have imagined. Like the hallways, the whole floor was covered with grass, but there was a stone path build right in the middle, and at the very end were two thrones, each with red seats and golden rails. The walls were colored light green, and there were dark-green vines bedecked on them. Altogether, it felt as if the room were one for a king and queen, perhaps those that ruled over elves, fairies, and the like.

And speaking of fairies, there was a boy that was dressed like one. He wore a light-green blouse that was reminiscent of a medieval peasant's, along with a dark-green pair of trousers that stopped at the middle of the calves. To his outfit was attached a pair of great silver translucent wings. He also wore a light-brown cloak that was adorned with sundry strange symbols and came with a hood secured by silver thread. On his waist was a belt with a silver buckle and a small pouch hanging therefrom, and worn over one of his shoulders was a small dark-brown satchel. The boy himself was rather short and had light-brown fluffy hair, of which a fringe stuck out and reached his left eye up to the eyebrow. He also wore a small crown of tiny leaves that neatly fit atop his head, which added to his fantastic aspect. Altogether, he looked like a little boy who had dressed up as if for some kind of play. The boy was sneaking about, looking down and appearing not to have noticed Masashi.

"O little pixie, where are you hiding?" he asked playfully, his voice as equally childish as his appearance. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

The boy then let out a small yelp of excitement and rushed toward Masashi, only to bump right into him.

"Oof!" Masashi blurted out as he fell.

"O-Oh!" the boy said, all excitement gone on his face. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to run into you!"

"I-It's all right, really," Masashi said as he stood back up. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"Oh, no, not at all!" the boy answered, sounding a bit more energetic. "Well, again, I'm very sorry about it! See, I was chasing after this pixie, but I didn't see you! I guess I should watch where I'm going next time, huh?"

"Uh, yeah, you can say that," Masashi said, more astounded by the fact that he sounded serious when talking about pixies. Had he not been simply playing around?

"Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen you before, mister," the boy said. "Who might you be?"

After Masashi introduced himself, the boy's eyes glinted gladly.

"Oh, wow! You're the Ultimate Lucky Student, you say? And you don't remember why?" the boy said. "Perhaps you've drunk from the legendary Fountain of Luck, where it is said that good luck is granted any man that comes upon it, at the cost of his memory of the encounter, for it is part of the elves' curse that guard the fountain. Tell me, do you remember having seen a fountain or any elves?"

"Not really…" Masashi said with much astonishment, mainly because of his explanation, which he was sure the boy had just made up, and yet it was clear that he had put much thought into it.

"Oh… Well, maybe you'll remember later!" The boy widened his smile. "Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Masashi! I'm **Takumi Takamitsu**, but my friends call me Kumi, so if you want, you can call me that! And as the **Ultimate Storyteller**, I'm ready to take you on a journey wherein we shall see elves, wizards, knights, and maybe a troll or two! I assure you, by the end, you'll have felt chills rushing down your body!"

_A storyteller, huh?_ That explained a lot about his personality and how silly he came off. Still, for someone that simply had the talent of telling fantasy tales, he seemed so engrossed in it that it was as if he were simply a bystander narrating events in his own imagination.

"Now, Masashi, I must waste no more time talking to you!" Kumi said. "I have a pixie to find, after all! They're pesky little creatures, but men say they grant one special powers if one should be lucky enough to find them! Would you like to join me in my hunt?"

"Ah, thanks, but no thanks. I'm not, uh, good at pixie-hunting," Masashi said.

"Ah, really? Well, if you change your mind, you're free to join me!"

Kumi then turned around and went back looking hard at the ground. Though certain that all he would find are spiders and other such critters, Masashi had not the heart to rain on the storyteller's parade. He then headed back to the hall and into the room directly opposite to the throne room.

Here, there were many chairs and a few sofas strewn throughout the room, which appeared to be a lounge. All of them were dark-green, the floor being light-green grass, the walls colored light-blue. Alongside the chairs and sofas were small wooden desks. The portion of the walls near the door had trees drawn on them and ended suddenly midway through, which made the effect that this room was a lone spot that one could rest in if one should grow tired of walking through a forest.

Standing by one of the chairs was a short girl that looked awfully frail, her complexion remarkably pale. Her long black hair reached down to her hips, the girl wearing a white kimono along with a black sash and a pair of cream-colored sandals.

"No, no, th-this can't be happening…" She appeared to be muttering to herself, not having noticed Masashi. "Wh-Why isn't it working…?"

"Uh, hello?" Masashi said.

The pale-looking girl let out a small gasp before she turned toward him, eyeing him with much carefulness. "Wh-Who are you? What are you doing here?"

Masashi was a bit surprised to see her acting so warily at him, especially when he had not even had the chance to talk to her a bit yet. As gently as he could, he introduced himself and told her that he was simply looking around.

"O-Oh, is that so?" the girl said, looking much less wary of him now. "A-Are you telling me the truth?"

"Of course I am!" Masashi had no idea why she was so suspicious of him. It was not as if anything about him came off as suspicious. At least, that was what he thought. "Look, I'm not going to hurt you, if that's what you're worried about."

"I see…" The girl faced him, but even then, there was quite a bit of unease on her face. "I… I'm **Hikari Fey**, the **Ultimate Spirit Channeler**."

Right away, he noticed that her surname was not Japanese, sounding more English instead, even though she looked not at all foreign. But there was something else that had caught his interest.

"Wow, you can channel spirits?" he said, having never met a spirit channeler before. "Is that true?"

"Wh-Why are _you _doubting me now?" Hikari said, showing a small scowl. "O-Of course I can. It's just that it takes a lot of energy from me, and I-I'd prefer not to do it. And even if I wanted to do it…"

"Well, what?"

"I-I can't do it right now, for some reason," she said. "However many times I try, I can't start a connection between me and the spirit I wish to channel."

Now that was odd. Should she be telling the truth, then there was something even odder about the situation than he had thought. Of course, that assumed that she was telling the truth and was not a great fraud, and it was in the realm of possibility; after all, one of his friends had once complained that a man had scammed him by pretending to have channeled a long-dead samurai's ghost.

_Still, that was only one time. I have no reason not to trust her_. And from what he could tell, on the whole, Hikari was harmless.

"But besides spirit channeling, can you do other spiritual things?" he asked.

"A-A few, but even them I can't do right now," Hikari answered. "Maybe there's something wrong with my spiritual powers…"

Sensing that she wanted some time alone, Masashi bade her goodbye for now and headed back to the hallway. Besides the throne room and the lounge, there were two other rooms that he could check out before heading to the garden at the other end. He headed to the room on the same side of the lounge.

This room appeared to be some kind of shop. There were counters of sundry items strewn throughout the room, along with a vending machine for drinks on the side. The counters held such things as books, jars of goodies, dolls, and so forth. On one counter was a small gachapon machine, as one would expect.

Standing by one of the counters was a pink-haired, green-eyed girl whose face was decorated with a few accessories; her cheeks were covered with pink hearts, and her nose was round and red. The girl wore a yellow dress that reached down to her knees and was embroidered with dots of sundry colors, along with red tights and a great red pair of shoes. Everything about her suggested that she was a clown.

As soon as the girl spotted him, she rushed up to him, giving him a great smile.

"Oh, hey there!" the girl said cheerfully. "I don't think I've seen you before! How are you doing?"

"I-I'm all right," Masashi said, much startled by how near to him she was. "I wasn't expecting to see someone as… colorful as you. Anyway, who are you?"

The girl giggled before she did a little twirl and faced him again, extending both her arms. "I'm **Haruka Minami**, the **Ultimate Clown**! Pleased to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you, too," Masashi said before introducing himself.

"Ultimate Lucky Student, huh? Wow, betcha you never had to worry about failing your classes," Haruka said. "I wish I'd had that kind of luck when I had to make this really big statue for art class."

"Really? How did it go?"

"Well, it was a bust!"

Masashi chuckled. Even though the joke was somewhat lame, there was something about it that he could not help but laugh at. At the very least, he already had a good opinion of her.

"In all seriousness, what are you doing here?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, I'm only looking around, and I think I quite like this place," Haruka said. "There are so many things here that I can use for props!"

"Still, aren't you wondering where we are?" Masashi asked.

"Ah, not really. I'm sure everything will work itself out!" Haruka said. "In the meantime, don't you want to play with me some more?"

"Thanks, but no thanks. I've got to go somewhere."

"Ah, really? Oh…" Haruka said. For a second, a frown appeared on her face, but in a few seconds, she brightened once more. "Well, no worries! I've had enough fun with you. And I've got to say, I bet you never sit down."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well, you're a stand-up guy, of course!"

Chuckling at her compliment, Masashi left her to her own devices and headed back to the hall. There was only one more room to check out in this hallway. Wondering whom he would meet next, he headed inside.

_Whoa… what's this?_

The room not only was incredibly wide and open but was also covered by lines of trees on all sides. At the very middle was a golden merry-go-round that had manmade horses and carriages as its seats, the roof bedecked with gems of many colors. The walls were painted a plain blue, and altogether, it felt as if this were a magical sight that one might stumble upon while wandering through the woods.

There was a woman standing not too far from the entrance. She stood out quite a bit, as her outfit was a black robe and a black veil underneath which was a white coif. Her long red hair reached down to her waist, and she appeared quite well endowed. Overall, with her clean fair skin and the tidiness of her clothes, she was quite a pleasant yet strange figure to look at.

"Oh, hello," she said upon noticing Masashi. "How are you?"

"I'm not doing too bad," Masashi said, "but I still don't know what exactly is going on here."

"Neither do the rest of us," she said. "In any case, I suppose I ought to introduce myself. I am **Hikari Shinto**, the **Ultimate Nun**. But please, call me Sister Hikari."

With how calm and polite she seemed, Masashi got the feeling that he could get along well with her. In any case, it intrigued him to see someone dressed like her, especially when she appeared not to be a foreigner.

"Pardon me, but are you by any chance a Christian?" he asked. "You call yourself a nun, after all."

"Oh, well, yes, I am one," Sister Hikari said. "Even if I hadn't introduced myself, I suppose the outfit would've made it obvious that I'm a nun. For as long as I can remember, I have been of the Christian faith."

"Then have you come to Japan on a visit or something?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, no, I've lived in Japan my whole life," Sister Hikari answered. "I live in one of the few churches that are in Japan. But I assure you, I don't always dress like this. I usually wear everyday clothes."

All that she had said intrigued Masashi more and more. He knew little of such religions as Christianity, and so he could not help but feel more curious about its values and rituals. One of the few things that he knew was that it was now popular to have weddings done in the Christian style, in which the groom and the bride in white would wed in a church. That was what his friends wanted for their weddings, and he could see himself doing likewise.

Leaving her alone, Masashi walked around the room some more. Though interested in the merry-go-round, he wanted to see whether there was more to this room. And lo and behold, there was a boy standing by what seemed to be a billboard. The boy had pale-blue hair that was slightly wavy and reached down to his shoulders, a stray fringe hanging over his left eye. He had a somewhat pale complexion and a slim, scrawny build, and wore a white roll-neck sweater, a dark-blue pair of jeans, and a black pair of shoes. Overall, he looked like someone who would keep to himself and stay inside for a long while. The boy appeared to be reading a brochure.

"Hmm… I see…" he mumbled.

"Um, excuse me?" Masashi said, after which the boy looked up.

"Oh, hello," he said. "Might I ask who you are?"

Sensing much hesitance from him, Masashi introduced himself. By this point, he had gotten rather used to saying his talent along with the curious fact that he did not know why he had been bestowed it.

"I see…" he said. "Well, nice to meet you, Masashi. I'm **Tanjiro Urata**, the **Ultimate Historical Novelist**."

Even after his introduction, Masashi could sense a great deal of unease from him. He assumed that he was simply untalkative and shy, which would go along with his overall appearance.

"Wow, aren't you the one that wrote the trilogy of _The Koto Players?_" Masashi asked. "A friend of mine read it and told me that he loved it."

Masashi remembered having seen his name before in a bookshop whenever he wanted to buy the latest comic or comic magazine. Unlike his friend, he owned none of his works, for he was not particularly interested in historical fiction, and he was none too surprised to see what the writer was like in the flesh, given that he thought history to be a rather introverted subject.

"I-Indeed, I am," Tanjiro said. "It was my first published work and was based upon my interest in musical history. It was originally only one book, but it soon turned into a trilogy. I-I'm quite proud of it, though I have to admit that I could've done better on several parts."

"Well, still, you managed to do fairly well, didn't you?" Masashi asked. "That's not something that many writers can achieve."

"I-I suppose so."

Masashi waited for Tanjiro to continue, only to see that Tanjiro was not going to keep the conversation going.

_I guess I should point our attention to that…_

"Say, Tanjiro, what is that you're holding?" Masashi asked, pointing at it.

"Oh, this? It's a brochure that acts as a guide to this place," Tanjiro answered. "I found it earlier in one of the other rooms."

"Well, could I see it?"

Tanjiro wordlessly handed him the brochure. Even looking at the cover, however, was enough to shock him.

The place that they were in right now was called Brightmere Mirthyard, and it appeared to be some kind of amusement park that took place on a ship, amazingly enough. The tagline was on the bottom, saying "Have lots of fun in a shining sea!"

Inside the brochure was a map of the whole ship, its various parts specifically pointed out as attractions and other points of interest. From what he could tell, there were four decks, or at least four decks available to the public; there appeared to be enough space for more decks under the lowermost detailed one.

But the back was by far the most surprising. It featured drawings of other ships, each having a different appearance from this one's. They were listed as other parts of the amusement park, and each had a different theme. This ship's theme, according to the front, was "Woodland Kingdom".

_Ah, now it all makes sense!_ It explained why every room and hall was covered with grass and had a certain fantastic element to it. Still, it did not explain why he and the others were here. He had no memory whatsoever of coming here, nor did he remember having heard about this amusement park. Then again, the latter could be attributed to the fact that he was usually kept busy with more important things, so he could have heard it in passing and simply forgotten about it.

"Could I have that back now?" Tanjiro asked. For a moment, Masashi had forgotten that he was even there.

"Uh, sure." Masashi gave him the map back. "Thanks for letting me read it. It explains quite a lot about our situation."

And yet he could not help but feel a bit more uneasy about the whole thing. If they had been kidnapped, then the mastermind behind it had somehow gotten control of a whole amusement park, let alone one that was made of many great ships. He hoped that the situation was not as bad as he made it out to be, but there was no denying that something odd was afoot.

* * *

**Hello, everyone! As you can see, I've already decided which of your submissions have been accepted. Lately, I've been rather busy, so I'm sorry that I didn't finish and put up this chapter earlier. ****Anyway, that's the first part of character introductions. The rest, of course, will be done in the next chapter. The whole cast list is already available at the bottom of the very first chapter, if you haven't seen it already.**

**As you've noticed, two of the characters have the same first name: Hikari Fey (the Ultimate Spirit Channeler) and Hikari Shinto (the Ultimate Nun). The latter, however, is always addressed and referred to as Sister Hikari. ****Also, ****I had lots of fun writing Kumi's dialogue, mainly because he's rather imaginative, and so I can be a bit more creative with what he comes up for his stories and explanations.**

**Now, I wonder what your impressions of the characters introduced so far are. Which characters do you like or dislike? Which ones do you find interesting?**


	3. Relaxation from Death (3)

Masashi left the merry-go-round room, heading over to the garden that he had seen earlier. Though troubled by his current circumstances, right now, he had no other option than to look around and find the other students.

Like the other rooms, the garden was full of grass and had a backdrop that showed trees, which gave the impression that he was walking through a lonesome spot in a woodland. This room, however, also had a small stream running from a waterfall at one end of the room to a small gap at the other. In the middle of the garden was a fenced-off great hole, which corresponded to the ceiling of the deck below this one. In fact, there was also the same kind of hole on this deck's ceiling as well. Like the garden below, there were a few batches of flowers, but here, there were much fewer of them. Instead, there were more patches of dirt in which one might grow flowers and crops. Besides the way from which he had come, there were two other ways out of the garden. One was a door at the other end of the garden, and the other was a door on the right wall that had stairs going up. On the whole, this room seemed much more a garden in which to grow things than a garden to admire.

Standing by the stream was a man that had ginger-red hair and wore a straw hat. The man had blue eyes along with a few freckles on his cheeks, and he wore a blue button-up shirt with short sleeves and a light-brown pair of khaki pants. If not for the fact that he was clearly a foreigner, his only remarkable feature would be the rural impression that he gave off.

"Now who are you?" the man said upon noticing Masashi. He spoke with a foreign accent, but it sounded different from what Masashi had expected. It was definitely not an American's, so maybe he was a European. Even once Masashi introduced himself, the man looked warily at him, as if asking himself whether it was worth the time to talk to him.

"Ultimate Lucky Student, you say?" the man said. "You certainly are lucky. Even if all you have is luck, you have no burdens to hold you back. You can choose whatever path you want."

"That's… one way to look at it," he said. Despite the praise, the man sounded not at all happy. "What about you?"

The man let out a frustrated sigh, as if he disliked the topic. "I'm **Murphy O'Hagan**, the **Ultimate Potato Farmer**. As you can tell, I'm not from around here. I'm from a land known as Ireland."

"Ireland?" Masashi thought that he had heard of it before, but there being so many European countries, he guessed that it was a small land and certainly no great political player.

"It's west of Great Britain, if it helps," Murphy said. "I'm currently studying in Japan right now."

"So you're a foreign exchange student, huh?" Masashi said. "What made you want to come here? Did you think that Japan had something in particular when it comes to potato farming?"

"Potato farming… Hah!" The man frowned, the delight disappearing from his face. "Let me warn you one thing, Masashi: if you want to stay on good terms with me, do _not_ talk to me about potato farming. Do you understand?"

Bewildered, Masashi nodded. He had certainly not expected the man to go back to his grumpy disposition. It was clear that it had something to do with his talent, but if he disliked his talent, how had he gotten it in the first place?

"I'm glad that you understand," Murphy said. "You seem like a fine fellow. I could see us getting along rather well in the future."

Leaving Murphy alone, Masashi walked to the door at the very end. The room was a wide grassy space that was reserved for nothing in particular; instead, it appeared to be a room that was meant to foster playful activities that one could come up with. Besides the drawn trees in the background, there were logs, mushrooms, barren tree trunks, and a few wooden structures that one could sit on, climb on, and so forth.

A lone man stood by a trunk, staring off into space. He had curly black hair along with a rather pale complexion that did not go well with his orange eyes. Wrapped around his neck was a gray scarf that was tucked into his double-breasted black coat. On his lower half was a dark-gray pair of jeans that seemed a bit too short for him, as his red socks were exposed alongside his black shoes. All in all, Masashi already had the impression that there was something a bit strange with this man.

"Hello?" Masashi said, the man appearing not to have noticed him. Only when he stepped into his line of sight did the man look right at him.

"Ah, excuse me," he said. "I was… evaluating the room and its features. Would you like to hear what I think?"

"Uh, sure," Masashi said, still not understanding what this man is. The man spoke with such a cold tone that he seemed like the kind not to laugh at anything.

"To start things off, this room's features are well crafted and seem quite durable," the man began. "The backdrop is painted flawlessly, and the grass and the other things here feel realistic enough to fit the setting. But the flaw is that though each piece is authentic, together, they do not form anything authentic, so to speak. They are simply here, nothing going on. In a word, this room... is lifeless. The room can become authentic only when there is life here, perhaps when children play around it. But as there is none of that, I feel nothing."

"That's…" Masashi could not think of a good word to describe what he had just heard. The man had rambled on and on about this room as if he were criticizing an art piece in a museum.

"Now tell me," the man said, seemingly unaware of how odd he appeared, "what do you think of this room?"

"What do I think? It's, uh… all right, I guess," Masashi said. "It certainly fits its role as a space for children to play in."

"Hmm… I see," the man said, sounding a bit bored. "If that is your opinion of it, then it appears that my conclusion is not too far off."

"Uh… I was hoping that you would introduce yourself," Masashi said, thinking it best that he be straightforward, lest he hear another round of critique of this room.

"I suppose that introductions are in order," the man said, still sounding uncaring. "I am **Haruyuki Kanagawa**, the **Ultimate Art Critic**."

_Art critic, huh…_

Masashi felt not at all surprised to hear what talent he had. It seemed rather fitting that Haruyuki, who liked to talk on and on about how he felt about this room of all things, critiqued art. Still, even with his talent, there was undeniably something singular about him; he was someone that those to whom he talked would remember clearly and most certainly not in a good light.

After Masashi's introduction, Haruyuki thought deeply for a bit. "You say that you do not know why you have your talent. That is rather… curious. Then again, this whole situation that we are in seems quite strange as well. I can only speculate on the workings behind this. What does the one behind this mean to evoke in us?"

"That's… a good question, actually," Masashi said. It was a weird way of wording it, but he now wondered what feelings the mastermind behind this imagined that he would have right now? Was he meant to be confused, scared, or careful?

"Now, if you will excuse me… I wish to be left alone." Haruyuki then faced away from him, staring off into space again. However weird he seemed, he certainly looked at things in a rather intriguing way. It certainly intrigued Masashi enough to wonder what was up with Haruyuki. In any case, now was not the time to think about that when he still needed to find the others.

Masashi headed back to the garden and headed up the stairs. This time, he found himself in a hallway that ran from the left to the right, and there was only one door before him. The walls were painted as if they were instead a tree's bark, and the door was painted brown to fit with the decor.

The room appeared to be some kind of living quarters; there were many small blankets and pillows set on beds shaped like great green leaves and hollowed tree trunks, and other things such as drawers and baskets were set beside them. Unlike the other rooms, the wallpaper was light brown, which made it feel as if it were a room built inside a tree. On the wall opposite to the door was a window through which one could see the room on the other side of this one. A small stepladder was set below it, even though a man could reach the window with no problem. It was quite clear that this room, fitting with this place's theme, was a bedroom not for men but for fantastic beings such as elves and fairies.

By one of the beds was a woman that had light olive skin. Her strawberry blond hair was tied up in a ponytail with a purple, white bow, many strands of hair beside each side of her face. The woman wore a yellow and white athletic jacket, a white halter top, a purple skirt, and a yellow pair of sneakers with frilly white socks.

"Hey, now, it seems someone's come to see me!" she said upon looking at his direction. "I don't remember seeing your face anywhere, so who are you?"

After his introduction, however, the girl guffawed greatly. "Seriously? Ultimate Lucky Student? Hah, I bet you made it up to make yourself feel special!"

"What? But it says so in my tablet."

"So what? Garbage is garbage, even if a tablet says it!" she said. "What do you think you are, if you're not a lucky student?"

"Well, a regular guy, I guess. I've never really done anything extraordinary, but it's more that exciting things happen to me, and more often than not, the reason is that my friends—"

"Yeah, yeah, I haven't all day to hear your life story!" she said. "I bet you're wondering who this gorgeous beauty is that's talking to you! Well, I'm **Sayua Tomi**, the **Ultimate Cheerleader**! Awed, aren't you?"

"Uh, you could put it that way," Masashi said, slightly shocked by how vain she had already come off as.

"Hah! Of course you are!" Sayua said. "You ought to join my fan club later! But I'll warn you, it's quite crowded!"

"Is that so…" Masashi said, looking at her perplexedly.

"What's with that face? Why the heck do you look so dreary, when you're with me right now?" she said, sounding not at all concerned.

"Well, it's nothing, but you seem rather confident when we have no idea on what's going on here. Aren't you a bit worried?"

"Worried? _Worried?_" Sayua laughed aloud. "Do you take me for a loser?"

_That wasn't what I meant, but your answer's enough, I guess…_

If she truly was that confident, then there was no need to be concerned about her, even though he thought that she had little reason to be that prideful. Feeling ever so minded to leave, he bade the cheerleader goodbye and left the room.

Facing the stairs that he had climbed earlier, he walked to the left, passing by two rooms that were labeled the men's and women's restrooms. At this end of the hallway was a room that had a great golden lock chained to it, as if it were a treasure chest. Trying to open it only resulted in failure; the lock was not there only for show. As he left, he wondered whether he could somehow get into that room later. It was the only locked room that he had seen so far, and so it was only natural that he felt curious about it.

Masashi headed the opposite way and walked over to the other end of the hallway, and this time, the door there had no lock. The room seemed to be a restaurant; there were tables strewn throughout the room, and on the left side of the room was a counter at which one could make one's order. He could even spot a door by the counter that led to what looked like a kitchen. The wallpaper was colored light-green, but there was no grass on the floor. He looked around a bit more and saw that there were two other doors connected to this room. One was a door at a corner, but on the door was a sign that said "STAFF ONLY". Unsurprisingly, it was locked. The other door, on the other hand, was on the same wall as the door from which he had come through, and it appeared to be the only way forward.

Just as he thought to leave, however, someone came from the kitchen door. It was a girl whose blue hair was tied into a curly bun at her neck's back. She wore a light-gray headband, her eyelashes thick, her skin fair. Her light-gray apron had a light-blue trim at the bottom and had many black-and-white images of sundry pastries. Worn over the apron were a white blouse whose sleeves were off her shoulders and a black pleated skirt. She also wore a black pair of ballet flats for her shoes.

"Oh, hello there!" she said blithely. "I don't think we've met yet. I'm **Faye Nirigiri**, the **Ultimate Patissier**! How about you?"

Masashi answered her, after which she looked at him curiously.

"You don't know why you have the talent, huh?" Faye said. "Well, that's pretty weird. Hopefully, it'll be cleared up sooner or later."

"So do I," Masashi said. "Now, what were you doing when I came in?"

"Oh, I was only looking through the kitchen," Faye said. "I was thinking that if we happened to be stuck out here, then it might help if I made us a treat. I assure you, as a maker of pastries, I can make a really good, lovely, and delicious treat!"

"Well, now that you're talking about it, I'd like to try one of your treats later!" Masashi said.

Faye giggled. "Well, I'm glad and delighted to see that you're interested! I may cook you a _chouquette_ later!"

Masashi had no idea on what a _chouquette_ was, but given that it would come from the Ultimate Patissier, he was sure that it would be delicious.

"By the way," he said, "I've noticed that your first name sounds foreign."

"Well, it is, but I assure you, I'm only half-Japanese," she answered. "It's spelled F-a-y-e in the English alphabet. My father's Japanese, as you can tell from my last name, whereas my mother's French."

"Ah, that explains a lot," Masashi said, now wondering whether the _chouquette_ was a French delicacy. "Well, I'll see you later. I think I'll look around a bit more."

"Take care now!" Faye said, smiling gladly.

Masashi headed through the other door and found himself in another hallway. There were a set of stairs and a room in the middle of the hallway, like the last one. This time, however, the room had nothing remarkable; it was a room that had the same decor as the servants' quarters, but all it had were boxes, so it seemed to be a storage room. There were only a few vending machines around the other end of the hallway, so there was no other way than go up.

_This is the deck below the uppermost one…_ Masashi thought, recalling what he had seen from the map. _Once I head up, I'll be outside._

With a mix of excitement and carefulness, he walked up the stairs, heading toward the light. As soon as he reached the top, for a moment, everything became bright, which made him cover his eyes with his hand. Once he slowly lowered it, he could then see everything. The blue heavens stretched above him, clouds strewn throughout, sunshine beaming down and warming his skin. The seawater hit against the great ship, and its smell lingered in the air, but the sea seemed calm, for there was no rockiness felt. All seemed well.

"Incredible…" Masashi said as he looked around. The deck, unlike the lower ones, had only grass in the inner portions. The cabin from which he had come out was built to look like a gap between two trees, as if entering it meant going through a forest of some kind. Behind the cabin appeared to be the captain's cabin, but even from here, he could not tell whether anyone was in there.

A thought occurred to him: all the people to whom he had talked must also have their own tablets as well. And since they naturally had information about themselves on their own profiles, it might be that his own tablet had been updated with their information. Masashi took out his tablet and checked the Profiles section. Indeed, most of the question marks on the row showing his icon had been replaced with the icons of the people whom he had already met. It was as if someone had been watching him and updating the tablet accordingly. There likely were surveillance cameras placed in each room, which was not too surprising, given that that was a thing in amusement parks.

_All right, I think I should go find the rest of the people here. They should be here—_

About a second later, his tablet disappeared.

_Wh-What the?!_

The tablet that had been in his hands was gone. It had not instantly disappeared; it was more that someone had quickly snatched it from him. He looked to the left and to the right, but could see no one else here. Whoever had taken it from him must have run away really quickly, or at least, that was what he thought. A few seconds later, however, he heard giggling from above.

"Looking for this?"

Masashi looked up at the cabin behind him. There, sitting on the branches of the trees that decorated the cabin, was a girl that had an incredibly odd and flashy outfit. The most noticeable feature was the bright red mask that covered much of her face, the only exposed parts being her eyes and the region around her mouth. She wore a dark-purple shirt that had red stripes running up and down, as well as a black skirt that reached down almost to her knees and a brown pair of boots. As for her natural features, she had chestnut brown hair that reached down to her neck and was cut in a bob style. In her right white-gloved hand was, indeed, the tablet that she must have taken from him.

"Uh, could you come down here? I'd like to have it back." Masashi asked, more befuddled than alarmed. The thief's outfit was rather flashy, the red mask being the greatest giveaway, and altogether, it was as if she had dressed to impress.

"Sure thing!" The girl, rather than climb down, jumped down from the cabin and landed on her feet without a problem, which left him speechless. She then offered him the tablet. "Well, go ahead! Take it! It's yours, right?"

"This… isn't a trick or anything, is it?" he asked.

"What? No, not at all!" the girl said, sounding truly confounded at his wariness. "What makes you think I'm trying to trick you?"

"Well, for one, you've just taken my tablet," he pointed out, "and you dress rather suspiciously. Can you really blame me for thinking that you're up to something? Maybe you're only pretending to give it back."

But instead of getting angry at the accusation, the masked girl simply laughed a hearty laugh. "Ah, but that is where you are mistaken! I've already done the job of stealing this from you, and so I see no need to use any more tricks and gimmicks! Rest assured, I'm only returning this to you, the owner!"

Even though he still felt a bit wary, she seemed to be telling the truth about her intentions. And now that he thought about it, if she truly wanted his tablet, why would she let him know of her presence here, when she could have simply run off with it? Masashi slowly reached for the tablet and let out a small sigh of relief after turning it on and confirming that it was his.

"You see? I wasn't trying to do something suspicious!" the girl said.

"But in that case, why did you even take my tablet in the first place?" he said, looking askance at her.

"Oh, I was only playing around… and showing off a bit of my prowess!" the masked thief said blithely. "What I did was what most of my job is like, but if I had truly been on the job, I would've sent you a calling card first!"

"And you are?"

The girl giggled, setting her right index finger on her red mask. "Behold and be amazed, for I am **Red Mask**, the **Ultimate Phantom Thief**!"

Ah, so that was it. The weird get-up, the whole talk about returning the stolen thing, and the part about sending a calling card was all simply due to her being a phantom thief.

"Wait… you're not a cosplayer?"

"Nope! I'm the real deal!" Red Mask said. "What makes you think I am?"

"Well, for one, you call yourself a phantom thief," he said, "and that sounds like something from fiction."

"Ah, but I'll have you know that we phantom thieves are indeed real!" she said happily. "And the owners of the treasures we've stolen certainly don't sing the same tune as you!"

Given that she had just successfully stolen his tablet from him and how genuine she sounded when talking about the subject of phantom thieves, Masashi leaned toward believing her. Still, it was rather strange to see and talk to a phantom thief in the flesh, and of all people, why would a phantom thief be here?

"One more thing," Masashi said. "You said that your name's Red Mask, but that can't be your actual name, so could you tell me what it is?"

The lady thief giggled. "Well, I'm Red Mask right now, and what kind of phantom thief would I be if I were to give away my true identity like that?"

Much as he wanted to satisfy his curiosity, she had a good point. If he had a career in thievery or any other misdeed, then there would be no reason to let any details of his identity exposed.

Bidding her goodbye for now, he walked around the main deck, wanting to see what features awaited him. Up ahead appeared to be a pool; beside it were chairs and parasols that had a wooden and grassy look, respectively; it was as if he were in a makeshift resort built by a lake outside a forest. The water looked rather clean, and given that it felt a bit warm right now, Masashi imagined himself swimming in it. It would certainly be something that he would do in a normal cruise trip.

There was a man standing by the pool. He had a tan complexion and dark-brown hair that was rather well groomed, and on the whole, he had a rather lean build. For the upper body, he wore a beige jacket over a white shirt, and for the lower body, he wore a pair of denim pants that had many sewn pockets. The man, his arms crossed, seemed to be looking down at the lake.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" he asked once approached. Already, the man had a wary look, as if evaluating him. "Well? Will you tell me aught, or are you come to make me wait until nighttide?"

By 'aught', he meant 'anything', and by 'tide', he meant 'time', Masashi guessed. It seemed that the man liked to speak archaically.

"Sorry about that," Masashi said before he told him his name and his talent. No sooner had he finished than the man looked dismissively at him.

"What a shame," he said. "I hoped that you had a useful talent."

"Wh-What? What do you mean by that?"

"What use is it to be lucky?" he said, looking away from him. "'Tis an utterly selfish talent that does not help mankind at all. Instead, you should have excelled at a subject such as mathematics or geology."

"But I didn't choose to be a lucky student!" Masashi protested. "I don't know why this talent's been given me!"

But the man looked not at all convinced. "That the title has been given you for an unclear reason does not change the fact that you had no talent beforehand. You have done nothing to foster the gift in you."

"You really think so?"

"Forsooth," the man said, his brow furrowed. "All men, even the lowliest ones, have the purpose of seeking knowledge. To disregard that makes us no better than other animals."

"That's… interesting to hear. Then who are you?"

"A man that is naught like you," he answered. "I am **Atsushi Morokuzu**, the **Ultimate Archaeologist**."

If he was an archaeologist, it somewhat explained why he had a fondness for speaking with archaic words. Atsushi came off as a scholar that had been so engrossed in his work of the past that he had come to talk like a man of the past.

"Now then, begone," Atsushi said, leering haughtily at him. "I have little want to talk to you when I have more important matters to think about."

Masashi was keen enough to follow his bidding, finding his dismissiveness rather troublesome. However intriguing he might be, it was quite clear that he would not talk to those that did not fit his standard, and there seemed to be little that he could do to change Atsushi's opinion of him right now. It was best that he leave him to his thinking for now.

After walking around the pool a bit more, he spotted someone else standing at the side nearer to the bow. It was a small boy that had short messy blond hair over which was worn a light-blue beanie bedecked with pink stars. The boy wore a light-blue sweater over a white shirt and a blue pair of denim pants whose pockets were also sewn with pink stars.

"Uh, hello?" Masashi said, wondering what he was looking at, as he saw nothing special in particular above him. No sooner had the boy turned around than he ran up to him, wide-eyed, which took him by surprise for a moment.

"Oh, hey there!" the boy said energetically. "You're another Ultimate, right?"

"That's right," Masashi answered before introducing himself.

"Wow, Ultimate Lucky Student! That sounds awesome!" the boy said, putting his hands beneath his head. "I'm **Arashi Seiya**, the **Ultimate Pyrotechnician**! Glad to meet you!"

Of all things that he had expected the boy to be, he would have never guessed that he was a pyrotechnician. It struck him as a rather careful job, given that it involved fire, and with this boy's energetic attitude, he could easily imagine him making a reckless mistake that would lead to a different kind of explosion from the one desired.

"Let's have a lot of fun together!" Arashi said, pointing keenly at the pool. "We can go swimming around in the pool! Or maybe you want to chase me around in a game of tag!"

"You really want to go play around, don't you?"

"Yep! The others don't want to, saying that now was not the time!" Arashi said, "That's why I want you to play with me! Trust me, it'll be lots of fun!"

"Ah, thanks, but no thanks," Masashi said, thinking it not the time to be playing around. He was not surprised to see that Arashi wanted only to play around, given his kiddishness. "Maybe some other time—"

"But I want to do it _now!_"

The boy, who had been smiling all this time, suddenly scowled, his teeth clenched, his hands tightened into fists, his eyes dead set on him as if he were a predator that had spotted its prey. The quick change in his personality stupefied Masashi; he had quickly thought him to be a cheery little boy, but all traces of that were gone now, as if that had not been his true self.

"Why won't you play with me?!" Arashi yelled. "All I want is a little fun!"

"W-Well, I just think that given the circumstances, now isn't the right time—"

"You're just like the others, then!" Arashi said, which scared Masashi even more. "You're not busy, are you?! Then there's no reason you can't play with me!"

Seeing that trying to explain it to him rationally would not work, Masashi thought that a different approach was needed here; the more the boy leered at him, the more willing he was to believe that he would soon try to hurt him if he did not have his way.

"Oh, uh, I'd love to, actually," he said, "but the thing is, I can't go swimming with you. See, I don't have my swimsuit with me, so that's what I meant when I said that now wasn't the right time! And I can't play tag with you, either, since I'm feeling pretty tired right now, so a game wouldn't be all that fun!"

The last one was not a lie; walking around this ship had tired him out a bit, and it did not help that a few of the people with whom he had already talked were tiring in their own ways. But in any case, he hoped that he had sounded believable enough.

"Oh, is that it? Then I understand!"

In a flash, Arashi smiled like an innocent child, Masashi bewildered that none of the stark anger that he had seen from him was there anymore.

"Well, it can't be helped that you can't play with me right now!" Arashi said. "Maybe we can do it later!"

"Yeah… maybe."

As Masashi walked away, he could not help but think him to be utterly confusing; he had quickly gone back to his happy self as if his anger had been fake all along. But his anger had felt so strong that Masashi could not tell himself that he had simply been pretending. What exactly was up with his sudden shifts in emotion?

As he reached the other end of the pool, he spotted a woman standing by the edge. Her dark-red hair was tied into a high ponytail with a black ribbon and had bangs that were neatly cut such that they hung just below her eyebrows. Her side bangs reached down to her neck, and some of them were even tied into braids with black hairpins. Her face had been made quite attractive with the help of mascara, eyeliners, and highlighters, and as for her clothing, she wore a black dress that looked fit for dancing and was bedecked with many ornamental diamonds. The black gloves that she wore covered her forearms and her hands except for the fingers, which were decorated with black nail polish. A red ribbon was wrapped around her neck, another wrapped around her waist as well. On the whole, she looked rather well-dressed, to the point that it must have been quite overwhelming for her to ready herself. She certainly looked fancy, however, and her outfit was more than enough to catch Masashi's attention.

"Hello there," she said once Masashi approached her. Her voice sounded quite smooth and a bit deep as well. "Are you an Ultimate? If so, what is your title?"

Already, Masashi had the impression that she was quite well-off; it would certainly explain her elaborate appearance and her somewhat polite way of speaking. Once Masashi answered her, she looked at him more closely.

"I see," she said. "Tell me, what is your station?"

"My station?" he said. "Are you talking about my social class?"

"Why, yes, it's quite important that I hear your answer," she said, already with a hint of disapproval. "Or shall I presume that you are from a middle-class family?"

"Well, I guess so. I'm not dirt-poor, but I'm not rich, either."

"Then in that case, I expect you to speak more humbly to me," she said, "for I am **Maiha Hanazawa**, the **Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer**. Surely you must've heard of me."

Masashi thought for a moment. "Sorry, but that doesn't ring a bell."

Maiha widened her eyes a little. "Hmph! You commoners are quite unaware about many things. I've won many ballroom dancing competitions and have had great success in the field. Tell me, what have _you_ accomplished?"

"Well, nothing, really, but—"

"Precisely. Like the typical commoner, you've done nothing special, and your talent says it all," Maiha said, smiling snidely. "In fact, you should be glad that I'm even talking to you right now. I usually do not talk to those that have little money."

"Wh-What?" Masashi stared at her, astounded that she could even say that. Though she spoke politely, it was rather amazing how open she was about her dislike of those of lower standing. It was more than a sense of betterness that seemed to come naturally if one were rich; it was the attitude that commoners were barely any better than swine.

"Why do you look so surprised? What I say is common sense. The smaller a man's wealth is, the more willing he is to do foul deeds for a bowl of rice. Honestly, you commoners must be busy in finding new ways to astound me. Think of it as a compliment when I say that you had better stick to manual work."

"But—"

"That's it," Maiha said, turning around. "Our conversation is over. I gave you more than enough time to talk with me, so be thankful that I didn't shorten it by five seconds."

Masashi thought that it was best that he end the conversation here. It was quite clear that she would not change her opinion on commoners, and she even treated talking with her as a privilege. It was a shame, since something about her interested him, but until he found a way for her to open up, she would always drive him off.

He walked over to the ship's bow, at which a lone girl stood looking upwards. She had straight black hair that reached down to her shoulders and had dark green-blue highlights and a small light-pink bow. She wore a dark-blue hoodie that had gray stripes running down the sleeves and around the sleeve cuffs, as well as what seemed to be a pale-green minidress underneath it. She also had on light-gray sports leggings, a navy-blue pair of sneakers with glittery pink laces, and a white pair of socks.

"Um… what are you doing?" Masashi asked, after which the girl looked at him.

"Oh… hello," she said, her voice quiet and a bit husky. "Sorry… I was only looking at the heavens."

"The heavens?" Masashi said, gazing into her bluish-purple eyes. "What for?"

"I wanted to see whether there were any flocks of birds," she said. "I have a compass on me. If I know which direction they fly in, then I can make a guess at the current time."

"The current time? But can't you just use a clock?" And even if she did not have a clock on her, Masashi thought that it would make much more sense to use the sun for that.

"Oh, no, I don't mean that kind of time," she said. "I mean the season. Certain species of birds migrate in particular directions depending on the season. Of course, even then, there are other factors to think about, such as our current location."

Come to think of it, what was today's date, anyway? Masashi did not have his phone with him, and he had not seen anything that acted as a calendar. That this girl had been trying to pinpoint what it was by trying to find a flock of birds was quite remarkable.

"Wow, that's pretty cool," Masashi said. "You must be pretty knowledgeable about this. Who are you, anyway?"

The girl showed a small smile. "Oh, I'm **Mari Anzai**, the **Ultimate Phenologist**."

"Phenologist?"

"I'm a specialist in phenology, the science of relations between seasonal changes and biological phenomena," Mari explained. "For instance, bird migration and plant growth. Of course, those organisms aren't the only ones to be affected by seasonal changes. Doubtless, many folks throughout the world undergo changes as well."

"Yeah, no doubt about that." He could right away think of the yearly festival that celebrated the cherry blossoms' full blossoming, which occurred at different times of spring. "A friend of mine has a few relatives that farm for a living. He says that they have to know the exact schedules of the development of plants and insects, and a great deal of it involves the seasons."

"Exactly!" Mari said a bit more energetically. "As you can see, phenology has many practical applications. Even if phenology was not formally a science until relatively recently, phenology has been with folks for thousands of years!"

"When you put it that way, that's pretty amazing!"

Masashi already liked to talk with Mari. Not only had she many interesting things to say, but she was also kind and friendly.

"So, uh, do you have any ideas as to what's going on?" Masashi asked, hoping that she might have something insightful to say.

"No… even having looked around, I still am not quite sure," Mari answered. "But I wouldn't worry about it if I were you. Whatever happens happens."

_Whatever happens happens?_ Masashi wondered why she had said that last part. Was she not at all concerned that danger might soon befall her, given that she knew nothing about this situation?

Just then, a merry jingle rang through the air, coming from a speaker.

"Puhuhuhu! Welcome aboard, everyone!" It was a blithesome but unsettlingly childish voice. "I hope you've been having fun looking around! Preparations for the opening ceremony have been done at last, so please head to the dining room in the second deck! See you there!"

The voice said nothing else, leaving him with even more questions. Who had just spoken to them in the announcement? Had it been this ship's captain?

_Well, I can think of nothing else I can do,_ Masashi thought. _I'd better go check it out._

* * *

**And that's the rest of the cast! As you can see, the prologue's nearly over, so more exciting things will soon happen! And let me tell you, it was very interesting to read your guys' thoughts on the characters introduced in the previous chapter! ****I wonder what your impressions of the characters introduced in this chapter are.**


	4. Relaxation from Death (4)

The dining room was filled with all the Ultimates. All stood at sundry places throughout the room, but no one stood behind the counter at which one might order food. It was a bit overwhelming to see all these people in one place, especially when a few of them had come off as quite unwelcoming, but the upside was that it was a constant reassurance that he was not the only one in this odd situation. If he were alone, he would certainly worry, not having a single clue as to what he should do.

"Wow, pretty amazing, isn't it?" Sorao said relaxedly. "This whole ship's meant to be part of an amusement park. Kind of creative, don't you think?"

"Yeah, so many places to explore!" Kumi answered, beaming, who seemed unaware of the situation's gravity. "But it also means even more hiding places for pixies!"

"R-Really?" Arashi said, looking oddly interested.

"This is no time to think about fantasies, you wretched fools," Abraham said, arms crossed. "Has it not fucking occurred to you to think about why we're even in this ship?"

"For starters, does anyone remember anything strange last night?" Mari asked. "I remember falling asleep in my bed, but that's all."

"Likewise," Murphy answered. "Well, in my case, I felt quite tired and so decided to sleep earlier than usual."

"But that's only you, right?" Tanjiro said. "I didn't feel anything weird."

"Yep, neither did I!" Haruka said, as blithesome as always. "I hit the hay without any problems!"

"Mayhap we have been kidnapped," Atsushi suggested, pondering. "The mastermind behind this waited for us to go to bed before kidnapping us. But an overnight kidnapping of eighteen teenagers that live in different places must have required much manpower, I trow."

"Indeed," Futaba said. "And that is not to mention how the mastermind obtained control of this ship, which I assume is owned by a great company. After all, if this is truly part of an amusement park, then the expenses to maintain this ship must be quite dear."

"Yeah, I can't imagine this being done by a small gang of thugs," Sorao said. "I guess we're all victims to a great conspiracy, huh?"

"G-Great conspiracy?" Hikari said, her face looking a bit paler than it already was. "Wh-Why did it have to be me…"

"Now, now, let us not assume the worst," Sister Hikari said gently. "Perhaps the one behind this has better intentions than we think."

"What the hell makes you think that?" Sayua said, frowning. "You seriously think the one who's kidnapped us is well intentioned?"

"If this has been done out of goodwill, our kidnapper certainly has an interesting way of showing it, yes?" Haruyuki said, sounding too delighted at this.

"And moreover," Maiha said, looking as if she had had enough of this already. "where is the one that told us to come here?"

All the Ultimates looked around the room, but a few seconds later, everything turned pitch black. The lights had been turned off. Some of the others began to cry out in terror, but then a voice rang out.

"There's no need for concern, passengers!" It was the same voice that had made that announcement earlier. "This is simply part of how things work here!"

A spotlight then suddenly shone on the counter, at which all now looked with bated breath. There was a door right behind the counter, so Masashi assumed that the one that had spoken earlier would appear from there. Instead, from underneath the counter jumped up a stuffed bear of all things. It wore a white peaked cap along with a white suit that had golden buttons and golden epaulettes as well. The bear's lower half, however, had no clothing. What was odder than the bear's black-and-white appearance was the red mark on its left eye; it struck Masashi as rather menacing.

"Wh-Whoa…" Sorao said, startled. "What the heck is this?"

"Hello, everyone!" the bear said, its voice matching the one's that had given the announcement. "Welcome to Brightmere Mirthyard, a shining sea in which you lovely men and women will have all kinds of fun! I am Monokuma, the captain of the ship that makes up this wonderful dreamland!"

"Wh-What the…?" Masashi said without thinking. No one could fault him; after all, the bear seemed able to move and speak all by itself, and he had never seen a bear that called itself a ship's captain.

"Wow… A talking bear!" Kumi said, his eyes glinting. "This must be a mighty wizard's work!"

"Uh, I'm pretty sure that it's nothing but a toy," Haruka said, though she looked quite unconvinced herself.

"Yeah, I agree as well," Murphy said. ""It must be controlled by the captain right now."

"Wrong, wrong, _wrong!_" Monokuma said, raising his paws in protest. "Didn't you hear me the first time? I am this ship's captain! Unlike all the other captains out there, I have my very own built-in A.I.! And as the captain, I am to be addressed as Captain Monokuma!"

"Well, then, Captain Monokuma," Sorao said, "are you the one that put us on this ship?"

"Ah, such obedience… It makes the job all the more worth it!" Monokuma said gladly, cheeks reddening. "To answer your question… yes! I'm the one responsible for your being here!"

"You are?!" Sayua said, scowling. "Then explain to me what the fuck's going on here!"

"Yeah!" Arashi said, angrily pointing at him. "I want answers now!"

"I'm getting to that, my passengers!" Monokuma said back. "First, as you're all well aware, we're out here at sea. There's no escape for you!"

"No escape?" Masashi said. "What do you mean, 'no escape'? Are you saying that we're trapped here?"

Monokuma covered his mouth with his paws. "Of course you're trapped here! No one's coming here to get you high schoolers! You'll be living here _forever!_"

The Ultimates gasped, eyes widened. Had he truly just said that?

"N-No way..." Hikari said. "Th-This has to be a joke… right?"

"I refuse to believe otherwise," Abraham said, scowling while clenching a fist. "What kind of fucking idiocy is this, if not a greatly unfunny joke?"

"I too cannot see any purpose in being penned up in this ship forever," Futaba said. "The number of resources needed to maintain this would be incredibly high."

"Oh, I assure you, you don't need to worry about that!" Monokuma said, touching the rim of his cap. "You'll all be given room and board as long as you're here, so you should be happy about this!"

"But I don't want to be here forever!" Masashi said. "I want to be back home!"

Monokuma looked askance at him. "Why do you still complain about this? Not only will your basic needs be met, but you'll also be able to do whatever you want here! Go ahead, go crazy and have fun all day, all night if you want! I'll be doing all the cleaning and replacing, so you're free to go wild!"

"Hmph. I have far more important things to attend to than pointless partying," Atsushi said, nettled.

"And for me to stay here a long while with these commoners will simply not do!" Maiha protested. "Hence, I demand that we be released at once!"

"Do you _truly_ want to leave this paradise?" Monokuma asked.

"Of course we do!" Tanjiro said, with which a few others then agreed.

"Well… all right. I can see that you're pretty keen to leave," Monokuma said dejectedly. "You win. I'll tell you how you can get out."

"All right!" Arashi said, smiling.

"At last, some decency," Maiha said.

Many of the others too expressed relief that their kidnapper had suddenly had a change of heart. And yet, even though this was something that someone in Monokuma's position ought to be sad about, he instead looked glad as if he had been waiting for this moment.

"Now, then, you're all wondering how you can get out," Monokuma said. "Well, it's something that I'm sure any of you can do!"

"Well, what is it?" Tanjiro asked, eyeing him warily.

"Puhuhuhu… It's nothing too great, really," he said. "All you have to do is… kill someone and get away with it!"

"Wh-_WHAT?!_" Masashi exclaimed. "What do you mean, 'kill someone'?!"

"There's nothing deeper than that!" Monokuma said. "Stabbing, poisoning, strangulation… Any method's fine! If you kill any of the others here without getting caught in the end, I'll deem you the winner of this killing game and let you go back to civilization!"

The others also stared at the captain either with horror or with bemusement. Not only had they been welcomed to this unfamiliar facility by a robotic bear claiming to be the captain, but the same bear had also said that this was all part of a killing game. It must be a great lie meant to amuse them, but from the looks of things, no one was minded to believe it.

"Y-You've got to be kidding!" Faye said.

"I do not understand what you mean," Futaba said. "A killing game? What a ridiculous notion."

"This must be naught but a jest," Atsushi said, sweating. "No man would do us such a thing."

"Ah, but you see, I'm a bear! I don't follow the standards that you humans have!" Monokuma said. "Of course, that doesn't mean I don't care about them! To see you go against your moral code for survival's sake… a bear like me can get behind that!"

"But there's no way we're behind this!" Red Mask protested. "Killing's wrong!"

"Oh, sure, but thievery's all well and dandy!" Monokuma said, grinning. "Why's that all right for you?"

"That's different!" she replied. "I've never killed anyone, and I don't plan to any time soon!"

"And neither will the rest of us, I'd like to think," Haruyuki said.

"But how do you know for certain?" Monokuma asked, fiddling with one of his white suit's golden buttons. "Sure, you might not think of killing any of your family or your very best friend, but none of them are here with you, are they? Instead, you're stuck on this ship with others you don't know, and suddenly, that barrier doesn't matter!"

"B-But still, I'd never kill anyone, even a complete stranger!" Hikari said. "I-If I were to kill someone, the spirit w-would haunt me forever!"

"Oh, but you're assuming that everyone here follows your standard," Monokuma said. "Haven't you ever thought about the possibility that not all of you are as morally clean as you?"

"Don't be ridiculous!" Sayua said. "Who the fuck can do that stuff?!"

"Unfortunately, Monokuma's right," Mari said, looking particularly contemplative. "I don't like to think about it, but keep in mind that we don't know one another really well. Perhaps some of us have fewer reservations about the killing game than we may think."

"And that doesn't change the fact that we're all still stuck here," Sorao pointed out. "If killing's our only way out, I'm sure some of us will seriously think about it."

Masashi stayed silent, not knowing how he could gainsay any of that. However much he hated to admit it, the two had a point; under normal circumstances, he would be certain that none of them would think about killing. But given the conditions that Monokuma had put them in, he felt tempted to think otherwise now.

"Now, then," Monokuma said, "let's go to the next part—"

"Free us _now!_"

It was none other than Arashi, who looked all too angry at what had been told the Ultimates. He marched up to the captain, fists clenched. Already, Masashi had a bad feeling about where things were headed.

"What's the problem here?" Monokuma asked, puzzled.

"I told you, _free_ us!" Arashi screamed. "I don't give a damn about your stupid killing game! Send us back to our homes _now!_"

"Wh-What?" Monokuma said, looking at him inquisitively. "I don't understand what you're saying."

"You don't?!" Arashi scowled even more. "Then maybe you'll understand _this!_"

"No, stop!" Atsushi yelled, but it was too late. Arashi grabbed Monokuma by the neck and raised him up such that all might see him. Masashi gaped at the sight, not only shocked that Arashi had done such a thing but also surprised that he even could do it; for someone who looked a bit like a little boy, he had much more strength than looks might suggest.

"L-Let go of me at once!" Monokuma said, most of the other Ultimates gazing speechlessly at this. "As your captain, I order that you release me!"

"Hah, and yet you won't do the same for us, your passengers!" Arashi said, smiling a wicked yet childish smile. "Maybe I should just blast you into the heavens! You'll make for some wonderful fireworks, and—"

"Silence, you fool!" Atsushi said. "Can you not hear that sound?"

"H-Huh?"

It was then that all could hear a beeping sound coming from Monokuma, who no longer resisted and instead looked lifeless as if he were a doll.

"Uh, what's going on?" Tanjiro asked.

"That… doesn't sound good," Sister Hikari said as the beeping grew faster.

"Holy Mother of God!" Arashi exclaimed, all anger replaced by worry on his face. At once, he threw the captain up into the air, after which he exploded, covering parts of the area behind the counter with soot, the smell of gunpowder traveling through the room.

"Wh-What the hell?" Masashi said, eyes widened. Of all the things that he had expected, an explosion had not been one of them. "What the hell was that?"

"That must've been magic cast by the evil warlock controlling that bear!" Kumi said. "Yes, it was explosion magic, whose might is so fearsome that men tremble upon seeing those that walk the path of explosions—"

"That was a bomb, you fucking imbecile!" Abraham said, his face a mix of shock and outrage. "The damn thing didn't need magic to try to kill us all!"

"More importantly, is anyone hurt?" Faye asked, who looked among the more frightened of the group.

"N-No, I don't think so," Tanjiro said as he looked about the room. "I think we're all right."

"How wonderful this is!" Kumi said. "We're all safe and sound, and the evil warlock's servant is now gone! We've nothing to worry about now!"

"Hah, you wish it were that fucking simple!" Sayua said before eyeing Arashi. "What the fuck were you thinking, grabbing him like that?!"

"You almost had us killed," Maiha said, looking at him judgmentally. "Even for a commoner, you astound me with your sheer recklessness and witlessness."

"I… I… I was only trying to help!" Arashi answered. Surprisingly enough, he looked rather dreary and gloomy, tears already falling from his eyes. "Wh-Why do you have to pick on me like that?! Can't you see that I'm sorry?!"

"To be fair, I highly doubt that he could have foreseen that," Haruyuki said, looking unfazed by the explosion.

"Yeah, I definitely didn't think the bear would explode, you know," Sorao said.

"Still, it was quite unwise to suddenly assault our kidnapper," Futaba said, a little flustered. "I should imagine that if things had not gone the way they had, we would have suffered much, much worse."

"Well, things should be all right now!" Red Mask said. "Monokuma's gone, after all!"

"Now that you mention it…" Masashi looked around the room, seeing whether there were any signs of Monokuma. All he could find were his mechanical body's charred remains, the bear's face eerily expressionless.

"Yea, I see naught of him," Atsushi said. "Forsooth, he is become no more."

"No more? Now that's just plain wrong!"

The childish voice shook Masashi right to the core, and Monokuma rose from behind the counter, looking not at all damaged and wearing the same outfit that marked him as the captain.

"What the?!" Masashi said. "H-How are you alive, when you exploded a few moments ago?!"

"Well, it's nothing too complicated, really," Monokuma said. "See, I have copies of myself throughout the ship! That way, if anything unfortunate should befall me, I can get back to work all nice and easy!"

"You!" Arashi said, angry once more. "You tried to kill me earlier!"

"Well, that's what you deserved for attacking me like that!" Monokuma responded, showing off his claws. "Passengers aren't meant to attack the captain, you know!"

"But the captain isn't meant to explode, either, so aren't you both in the wrong?" Mari asked.

"Well, when you put it that way… Ah, whatever! As I am a kind and understanding captain, I'll let this one go, so think of it as a warning of what'll happen if you try to attack me again!" Monokuma replied. "Now, as I was saying earlier, there's more of the killing game to cover. Haven't you been wondering what I meant when I said 'kill someone and get away with it'?"

"You're... talking about the latter half, aren't you?" Tanjiro asked.

"That's right! If someone dies, how shall we tell whether the crime's been gotten away with?" Monokuma replied. "And the answer to that is… the class trial!"

The eighteen students were then told how the class trial system worked. It seemed rather simple; if someone were to be murdered, the remaining members of the "class", which the group was now called, must debate with one another to determine which of them was the blackened, the one that had murdered. The class trial's outcome was determined by popular vote, and if the vote were correct, then only the blackened would be punished.

"But… by 'punished'," Haruka said, "what do you mean?"

"Puhuhuhu! It's the moment that we all can't wait to see!" Monokuma said. "Simply put, the punishment is… execution!"

The whole class gasped.

"E-Execution?!" Faye said, covering her mouth. "But why?!"

"Well, it certainly won't do if the blackened are not punished for their misdeeds, yes?" Monokuma answered. "An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a paw for a paw! That's why there'll be a punishment at the end of every class trial! And I have very special punishments for each of you, so I can promise you seafaring students that you'll enjoy them very, very much!"

_N-No way..._

Masashi could not believe any word of it. Everything that the bear had said must be lies. There was no mind so twisted that it had decided not only to force them to kill but also to punish the wrongdoer with death in return. It was all so horrible that it must be something out of fiction, and yet, the bear wearing the captain outfit still stood right before them, explaining to them the rules of the killing game of which they were now players. And the worst part was that there truly was no escape; when he was a ship in some undetermined part of the sea, there was little chance that he could try to swim away.

"This... can't be happening, right?" Sorao said, nervously fiddling with a fringe of his red hair. "This all has got to be a nightmare."

"Y-Yeah, it's a spell that the evil warlock has cast on us!" Kumi said, holding onto the hood of his light-brown cloak. "It has put us in an everlasting nightmare from which we can wake up only if someone makes us drink a potion of water blessed with the elven queen's magic!"

"Death will have come by the time you awaken, I'm afraid," Haruyuki said, adjusting his gray scarf. "There's no awakening from this one."

"If only everyone here had the same mindset as you, everything would go so much more smoothly!" Monokuma said, holding in his laughter. "Now, one last thing before I tend to my captainly duties: I've already updated your Monopads, the tablets that you have on you, with the rules of the killing game! If you don't want to be punished, then be sure to follow them! Now, if you'll excuse me—"

"Just a moment, please."

It was Futaba, who looked quite troubled by something.

"Why are you doing us all of this?" she asked. "What is the purpose of this killing game? Is it for sheer entertainment? Or it is for something else?"

Monokuma chuckled a most detestable chuckle. "I'm afraid that's a secret, missy! The killing game wouldn't be fun if I told you everything about it, would it?"

_Huh? So the reason's a secret as well?_ Masashi thought. If it were not important, then he would simply tell them. _But what reason could there be to force us to kill?_

"I see…" Futaba answered. "Well, then, I'll be sure to look at your rules later."

"Oh, you've already accustomed yourself to this? You've no idea how much that gladdens me!" Monokuma said. "Well, then… remember, everyone! You're at Brightmere Mirthyard, a shining sea in which you men and women will have all kinds of fun! Enjoy your time here before you start killing one another!"

With that, Monokuma moved downwards, disappearing under the counter and leaving the eighteen students here. For a short while, no one said anything, having been made speechless by not only the bear's appearance but also the terms that he had forced them to follow.

"So, uh, what's our plan?" It was Sorao. "You've heard Monokuma. We're trapped here, and there's no escape."

"I-I still think that this whole thing isn't real!" Haruka said. "It can't be… Why would someone make us do this?"

"That's the question we all have in mind," Mari answered. "But… I don't think that it's that important right now. There's something more urgent to think about."

"Wh-What is it?" Sister Hikari said.

"Well, it's simple: now that we know the conditions to win the killing game, how many of us are now thinking about winning it?"

It was that very question that made all the students look at one another warily. There was no denying that she was right about this; however outraged and horrified they appeared, surely some of them had already accepted the fact that if they wanted to escape, they must do the evil deed of murder. And with how little they knew of one another, there was no telling which of them were harmless and which of them were dangerous. It was all a game full of uncertainty, and even one misplay might come with a dear cost. Even though he was trapped on a ship with seventeen strangers, Masashi would never try to kill any of them. But which of the others could he say the same for?

The killing game had begun.

* * *

**Prologue: Relaxation from Death - END**

**Surviving Students: 18**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki - Ultimate Lucky Student**

**2\. Atsushi Morokuzu - Ultimate Archaeologist**

**3\. Faye Nirigiri - Ultimate Patissier**

**4\. ****Maiha Hanazawa - Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer**

**5\. ****Takumi Takamitsu - Ultimate Storyteller**

**6\. "Red Mask" - Ultimate Phantom Thief**

**7\. Abraham Zargari - Ultimate Waiter**

**8\. Futaba Inoshishi - Ultimate Figure Skater**

**9\. ****Arashi Seiya - Ultimate Pyrotechnician**

**10\. ****Hikari Fey - Ultimate Spirit Channeler**

**11\. Sayua Tomi - Ultimate Cheerleader**

**12\. Tanjiro Urata - Ultimate Historical Novelist**

**13\. Hikari Shinto - Ultimate Nun**

**14\. Haruka Minami - Ultimate Clown**

**15\. ****Murphy O'Hagan - Ultimate Potato Farmer**

**16\. Haruyuki Kanagawa - Ultimate Art Critic**

**17\. ****Sorao Mineta - Ultimate Celesta Player**

**18\. Mari Anzai - Ultimate Phenologist**

* * *

**And that's the end of the prologue! The killing game has started at last. Now that you've seen all the characters, what are your predictions on what will happen throughout the game? Which ones do you think will be the victims, killers, or survivors? Which characters are you most interested in? It'll be pretty interesting to see how your answers change over time, so I'm definitely keen to see what you guys say in the reviews!**


	5. The Woodland King Comes (1)

**Chapter 1: The Woodland King Comes**

For a while, all the students only looked at one another, dazed at the recent turn of events. It was simply unbelievable that all eighteen of them were now a killing game's players, the mistrust and wariness rising and thickening the room's atmosphere. It was only when Sorao suggested that they check the rules in their Monopads that the room seemed to lighten up, albeit ever so slightly. The killing game's rules were:

1\. The breach of any rule listed here results in death as punishment.

2\. Violence against Captain Monokuma is forbidden, as is damage of the amusement park's surveillance cameras.

3\. "Nighttime" is from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. Some restrictions may apply during then.

4\. Students may explore the amusement park with few restrictions.

5\. Students may not willfully and knowingly throw anything into the sea.

6\. Once a killing is done, a class trial to determine the killer (hereinafter the "blackened") is held.

7\. If the blackened is caught during the class trial, only the blackened is punished. If the blackened is not exposed, however, all the students but the blackened are punished.

8\. A body discovery announcement plays if three or more students (except the blackened) have discovered the body.

9\. If two different killings by two different killers happen in the same time period, only the killer of the earlier death is deemed the blackened.

10\. Captain Monokuma may not participate in a murder.

11\. Captain Monokuma may not harm a student unless the student has broken a rule.

12\. Only when the amusement park reaches its destination does the killing game end.

13\. Captain Monokuma may add additional rules at any time.

"This… is unbelievable…" Masashi mumbled.

"Th-This is no game!" Kumi said, already shaking. It did not surprise Masashi to see the childish storyteller not taking this well. "H-How can killing be a game?! I… I want to go home!"

"Well, too bad for you, but there's no fucking way to do so," Abraham answered, though he looked a bit uneasy; even someone like him would naturally be bothered by this. "And even if you don't want to play it, it doesn't change the fact that we're all now players."

"Hah! No way I'm gonna do what that stupid bear says!" Sayua yelled. "Class trial? What kind of garbage does he expect me to follow?"

"But if you disobey him, you'll have broken one of the rules," Sorao pointed out. "And, you know, I don't think any of us will doubt that he'll kill you. We all know what happened earlier, thanks to a certain someone."

"I-I've already said I'm sorry!" Arashi protested.

"Well, don't let it bother you," Sister Hikari said gently. "It's all in the past now."

Arashi showed a slight smile. "I… I'll try!"

"Still, right now, you are too reckless and careless not to pose a danger to us," Futaba said, giving him a disapproving look. "I think it best that you watch yourself and be more thoughtful of those around you. In fact, I'm surprised that no one has made you behave yourself."

"Wh-What have you just said?!" Arashi yelled.

Futaba let out a tired sigh. "What I'm saying is that if you don't want to be killed, then you had better be on your best behavior. It's that simple."

"Yes, I do agree," Maiha said, showing a smug smile. "But then again, I'm not surprised if he doesn't listen. He's such a witless commoner that I can foresee his being one of the early victims."

"T-Take that back!" Arashi screeched. "Take that back now!"

Maiha widened her smile. "All right, then. You'll be the _first_ victim instead."

"How could you say such a thing?" Tanjiro asked, who himself looked quite bothered by the recent turn of events. "Can't you hear yourself?"

"What, don't tell me that you're not thinking it, too," Maiha said, crossing her arms. "Recklessness is a drawback in the killing game, after all."

"But the way you said it…" Tanjiro said. "You sounded certain about it. Too certain."

Haruyuki let out a chuckle. "Are you suspecting that she already plans to kill him?"

"Oh, don't be ridiculous. It was a rather obvious prediction," Maiha said. "And it looks like you too are already thinking about it!"

Haruyuki shook his head. "No… I'm rather skeptical of this whole thing. A killing game is rather interesting as a concept, but in truth, what I've seen so far is rather unbelievable."

"Y-Yeah!" Red Mask let out a laugh, albeit one full of nervousness. "This whole killing game has to be a joke! It has to be a prank, even if it's one that's gone too far!"

"Right! A killing game's something you only see in films and stuff!" Faye added. "It's a dramatic, fearsome, and heart-stopping thing that belongs only to fiction!"

Atsushi scowled. "Fiction, quotha! Why will you fools not admit that this is real?"

"Well, this is off to a fucking good start," Abraham remarked dryly. "A few minutes in, and a few of us are already arguing. How marvelous."

However foul-mouthed and standoffish he might be, Abraham had a point; even though all of them knew the situation's awfulness, a few of them had already started bickering rather than think of a plan to go against what Monokuma had in mind for them.

_No… No, this is only natural_, Masashi thought. _Being told that we're in a killing game naturally makes us think in the killing game's terms. But..._

"I'm not worried," Masashi said. "I… I don't think that any of us will kill."

Atsushi looked askance at him. "What makes you think so? Are you not at all aware of the circumstances wherein we have been put?"

"Yes, I'm aware."

"Then whence is your confidence that this will end without any deaths?"

"I simply think that killing someone is an incredibly hard thing to do," Masashi answered. "I don't deny that this does look pretty bad, and there are a few temptations to make us kill, but in the end, I'm confident that things will work out. It's easy to think about killing, but if it ever came down to it, we'd think twice about it and see how wrong it is."

As Atsushi widened his snarl, a few of the other students gazed at him and Masashi, wondering at what they had said.

"Egad… What a fool you are," Atsushi said pitifully.

"Well, if he's a fool, then so am I."

Everyone gazed at the voice's root, which was none other than Murphy, who looked quite unbothered by this.

"This whole killing game's nothing to worry about," Murphy said. "I'm certain that this is nothing more than a prank done by some hooligans who wanted to get back at us Ultimates."

"Some hooligans? Are you mad?" Atsushi asked, disgusted. "Do you think that this whole thing has been done by some knaves who had no other means of mirth?"

Murphy, however, looked no less sure of his conclusion. "Yes, and I bet you that if we do nothing throughout this 'killing game', it'll all fall apart, and they'll let us go sooner or later."

"Then you ought to demonstrate for us," Atsushi replied. "Break a rule. See whether they truly mean it."

Murphy sighed. "Even if I do not believe in this whole sham, that does not mean that I should be wantonly breaking their rules. I suggest that we do _nothing_. Even if they truly aren't playing around, they still can't do anything bad against us if there's no ground for it."

A few of the others began to look more and more agreeing with what the Irishman had said. Masashi was, of course, glad that someone else also thought that things would turn out all right, even though he was not so sure as Murphy that this was a joke; this whole thing seemed too well designed and complicated to be a mere joke. The archaeologist, nonetheless, looked none too pleased, his right hand clenched into a fist.

"You who think likewise will regret it," Atsushi said a bit menacingly. "The killing game _will_ go on, whether you admit it or not. And once the first body pops up, you will rue this. Now, if you will excuse me..."

"And where do you think you're going?" Abraham asked once Atsushi headed toward the exit.

"Back to the room wherein I awakened," Atsushi answered, not even bothering to face the rest of them. "Earlier, I found a keycard in my pockets, and I saw that each of our doors had a lock. Naturally, it makes our rooms the safest place to be in."

It was then that Masashi saw that not once had he checked his pants' pockets ever since he had found himself in this strange place. Indeed, in his pockets was a white keycard that had his name on it. Now that he thought about it, the bedrooms' doors from the outside had key readers and the students' pixelated portraits, so it was clear that those were their bedrooms.

"Shouldn't someone stop him or something?" Sorao asked once Atsushi was gone.

"No, it's quite obvious that he's become a bit agitated about all this," Futaba answered. "But I assure you that after a while, he will come to his senses and rejoin us. In the meantime, we ought to do something else."

"What do you have in mind?" Sister Hikari asked.

"It's obvious, really," Futaba said. "The mastermind to all this may have slipped up somewhere and left behind a way for us to leave this place. I suggest that each of you start looking around, perhaps in groups."

"Uh, all right, then," Tanjiro said. "Then when and where shall we meet up?"

"Let us come back here around 7 o'clock. The clock says that it is 1 o'clock right now," Futaba answered. "You're free to do whatever you want, but if you want to _truly_ help, then you ought not to slack off and instead work to find a way out."

Though Futaba could have said the last part less condescendingly, she had made a good point; maybe there was something that the mastermind had overlooked, and if luck were on his side—he still doubted whether he was truly a lucky student—then they might find a way to escape this horrible nightmare.

"Now, then, I shall see you later," Futaba said. "I have an investigation to conduct."

She left the room, leaving the sixteen of them here.

"I have no business with you commoners," Maiha said. "I too shall conduct my own investigation."

She too left the room, though no one appeared particularly sad at her absence; she must have come off as unbelievably haughty to the rest of them as well.

"I-I'm going back to my room," Hikari said, looking none too happy. "I-If you ask me, the archaeologist has the right idea. I-I'm not safe out here with you."

"I'll just go look around for more pixies!" Kumi said, who still appeared to be quite troubled at this game's nature. "Maybe with their magic, they'll help us escape!"

Arashi gasped, eyes glinting. "They will?!"

Abraham sighed, crossing his arms as he looked disapprovingly at him. "Don't tell me that you believe in all that pixie hogwash."

"N-No!" Arashi answered, looking away from him. "I-I was only surprised to hear that coming from him, that's all! I-I'm not interested in finding any pixies and whatever!"

It was a bit cute to see the pyrotechnician in denial over his belief in fairies, but on a more serious note, Masashi thought that now was not the time to go playing around. But on the other hand, there was a lot of time to kill before they should meet up again, and having a few people not do anything productive should not hinder them too much.

_Hmm… Which one of them should I look around with?_ Masashi thought, looking at each of them. _Well, it should be someone I can get along well with, that's for sure._

"Hey, Masashi, look around the place with me, will you?"

To his surprise, it was none other than Sayua, who seemed to have become bored, even though she had denied at first that they were all in a killing game.

"Uh, sure," Masashi answered. She was not exactly his top choice, given her vainness and rough attitude, but he now wondered why Sayua wanted to hang out with him; as far as he was concerned, he was no one special, and in fact, Sayua had made fun of him because of his newly given talent. Even though he preferred someone like Mari or Faye, at the very least, she was not Maiha, who he knew would constantly call him a commoner.

Masashi followed Sayua out of the room, and the two headed to the third deck's playroom, in which he had first met Haruyuki. The room seemed unchanged, the woodland decorations still set where they had been earlier.

Sayua then sat on a nearby stump. "Well, what are you waiting for? Start looking around for a way to get out of here! That's my bidding, and _you have to do it now!_"

She had said the last part as if it were part of a chant. It made some sense; she was a cheerleader, after all, even though he did not feel rather livened up.

"Uh, why?" he said, bewildered.

"You're a member of my fan club, aren't you?" she said, sounding truly surprised. "You agreed to join it when we first met!"

_I'm pretty sure I didn't agree to anything like that,_ Masashi thought. In any case, he thought to keep his mouth shut here; he had a feeling that it was best to stay on her side if he wanted her not to give him any heartache.

"Speaking of that, how many people are in your 'fan club', anyway?" he asked, hoping to change the subject.

"You think I can answer that?" Sayua said, smirking. "Let me tell you, lots of people adore me so much that they call me a star fallen from the heavens."

Masashi was sure that she was simply overblowing it, but a bit of flattery never hurt.

"Wow, so you want to make everyone your fan, huh?"

Sayua let out a scoff. "Of course not. What do you take me for, someone with low standards?"

"Huh?" Masashi thought that she was someone who was self-centered and thus would adore being in everyone's focus.

"I'm not one of those girls that want to befriend everyone, you know," Sayua answered, fiddling with a fringe of her strawberry blond hair. "When you put it that way, you make me look like some kind of lameass girl who's desperate for friends. No, I actually have standards for who gets to be in my fan club."

"Then what makes me worthy to be a fan?"

"You?" Sayua rubbed her chin, thinking. "Well, if I had to say, I'd think you're someone who likes to listen to others."

"I do?" Masashi said.

"Yeah, that's why I even told you to come with me," Sayua said. "You give off that vibe, you know. And don't be ashamed of it! What you have is a good quality, if you ask me."

"Oh, I see…"

Masashi then went back to looking around the playroom, noticing that Sayua was keeping a keen eye on him. It was not too surprising that he had ended up having to do all the work here; given her vainness, Sayua struck him as someone who would have others do the work whenever she could. But from what he could tell, it was not so much that she was lazy as it was that she wanted to be the one who told others what to do. Still, that did not explain the rough attitude, which he thought was counterproductive for her purpose; if she wanted others to listen to her, then would it not be better to be kind instead?

After a while, Masashi stopped, having found nothing noteworthy. It was rather disheartening, given that he had expected that there would be some mistake that the mastermind had made, something that would end this wretched nightmare. Even when they left the playroom and checked the garden, the shop, and the lounge, they found nothing.

"Man, what a waste of time this has been," Sayua bemoaned as they left the lounge. "You know, I'm gonna talk with a few of the others now. It'd be pretty boring to talk to the same person all day, and I'm always looking for a few more fans. See you later!"

Sayua then headed down the stairs, going back to the deck where their rooms were. Even though he wished that she had put it a bit more effort in the search, in the end, Masashi thought to leave her be, finding it a bit of a relief to be away from her; it had been quite a challenge to brook her haughtiness for the last few hours or so.

He then headed to the throne room, where he saw Haruka, Arashi, and Kumi, the last of whom was telling a tale to the other two. This time, Kumi was reading a book that was bound by thick leather and had a greatly embellished blue cover.

"After the knight felled the evil wolf, he kept his way through the woods," Kumi said, both the storyteller and the listeners looking ever so glad. "He soon saw the fastness wherein the evil warlock lurked. There were many guards roaming around the building, and the knight thought of a plan to sneak in so as to rescue the fairy queen's daughter, whom the warlock had kidnapped for his wicked ritual."

"Oh, and what happened next?!" Arashi said, both he and Haruka staring at Kumi with great awe.

"The knight remembered that along the way, he had seen a merchant that sold ale," Kumi continued. "He then headed back the way whence he had come, and—"

"Uh, what are you two doing?" Masashi interrupted.

"Oh, Sir Masashi! I didn't see you there!" Kumi said, looking up from his book. "I was reading Lady Haruka and Sir Arashi a tale that I had come up the other day."

"It's so delightful!" Haruka said, smiling. "It's wonderful to listen to his stories! He makes the fairies and elves feel so real!"

"Oh, make no mistake, they _are_ real!" Kumi said. "They live among us, hiding in the smallest places for their safety. I've seen many elves, those silly little creatures, so I know they're real!"

"And speaking of that, didn't you say that you would catch some fairies?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, I did, but after looking around with Lady Haruka and Sir Arashi for a long while, we couldn't find any!" Kumi said sadly. "The warlock must've scared them all off with his wicked words!"

"Oh, no, whatever shall we do?!" Haruka asked, overblowing her horrified reaction. Certainly, she must be aware that this was simply Kumi's fantasy, and so she had decided to go along with it to make him happy.

"Well, here's what we shall do," Kumi answered. "The fairies are not here with us, but men say that they are creatures that come to rain on merry men's parade. Thus, if we act merrily, we shall draw in the fairies and then catch them!"

Haruka gasped. "I think I can help you with that! As a clown, I'm meant to make others merry! I once cheered up a pet owner who was really, really gloomy!"

"What?! Why was he sad?!" Arashi asked.

"Well, he had become bald, and I thought it unfortunate that he'd lost his every hare!"

Masashi snickered. It might be rather simple, but he found the joke worthy of a few chuckles.

Arashi laughed aloud. "I think it's working! Keep it up!"

"Ah, all right, then!" Haruka said, grinning. "Why do many merchants become seafarers?"

"Huh? Why?" Kumi said, tilting his head slightly.

"Well, they want to raise their sails!"

Now it was Kumi that laughed aloud. "Oh, I get it! You're a funny woman, Lady Haruka!"

Haruka widened her smile. "A clown's job is to make everyone happy! If you're laughing, then I've done my job right!"

Masashi too was glad, not only because Haruka's jokes were a bit funny but also because it was swell to see the three of them laughing at a time like this. It was a sign that they were looking at this killing game situation the best way that they could, and as long as they could tough it out like this, they would have the killing game end in a way that the mastermind did not want.

"Well, have the fairies come yet?!" Arashi asked, excitedly looking about.

"No, but by the next morning, they will have come!" Kumi answered. "I've been watching the fairies and the other creatures for a long time. And I can tell you that they like to come at different times at night. It makes sense since night is when men sleep, so the creatures can sneak into our rooms and begin their plotting."

"R-Really?!" Arashi said, energized, his fists pumped.

Kumi nodded a bit proudly. "But be careful if you want to look for these creatures. A few of them are actually monsters that will attack you, and let me tell you, they're very frightening! I still get a few chills upon thinking about them!"

Haruka quivered. "A-Are these monsters here right now?"

Kumi looked around the room for a few moments before facing his audience. "No, there are none here right now, and I've never seen any in my pixie hunting. But remember: come nighttime, the monsters may come out and try to get you!"

* * *

It was seven o'clock, and the students began to gather at the dining room.

"Well, well, look who's come back!" Sorao said upon coming in and seeing Atsushi by one of the tables. The archaeologist had already been in the room when Masashi had come back here.

"Take this not the wrong way," Atsushi said. "I am come only because I have realized that to stay in my room would only make me suspicious. A long while in which no one could account for my actions would only hinder me."

It was disappointing that Atsushi still had the mindset that they were all playing the killing game. Masashi wanted to tell him that he ought to look at this another way, but even he must admit that he needed another way to persuade him.

"And what about you?" Sorao asked Hikari, the spirit channeler. "Didn't you say that you were going to stay in your room?"

"I-If it hadn't been for my hunger, then I would've stayed..." Hikari answered, looking at each of her peers warily.

"Now, now, we'll have much to eat soon," Faye said reassuringly. "It's the least I can do while we're stuck here."

"Ooh, cook me cookies!" Arashi said excitedly.

Sister Hikari chuckled, her expression calm and serene. "Cookies are more fitting as dessert. For dinner, we ought to eat something more usual."

"Well, I'll leave that to you, Sister Hikari!" Faye added. "Later, I can cook us a few tasty, delicious, and mouth-watering treats!"

Arashi smiled, eyes glinting. "Awesome! You're the best, Miss Nirigiri!"

_Miss Nirigiri?_ Masashi found it a bit amusing how quickly Arashi warmed up to her on the promise of sweets. At the very least, it was good that the group on the whole seemed to be getting along well with one another. With friends like these, why would any of them ever want to kill?

"For the whole afternoon, I was seeing whether there were any birds and when the sun set," Mari said. "I saw no birds, but it got dark about two hours ago. I'd imagine that this means that it's about winter right now, but that is true only if we're in the Northern Hemisphere."

"Come to think of it, where exactly are we?" Tanjiro asked, contemplating. "Yes, we're in a ship, but at what part of the earth are we?"

Murphy touched his straw hat's brim. "It's a good question, but I don't think Monokuma will be spilling the beans. He did say that he wouldn't reveal us everything about the killing game."

"In any case, it's not as if the season made a difference, yes?" Haruyuki pointed out. "Though swell to know, it's not important information."

All talk, however, ended once a certain girl cleared her throat and caught everyone's attention. It was Futaba, who stood a bit away from the main group.

"Now then, let us get right to business," she said. "I have looked around the decks, and I am sorry to say that I have found nothing that can help us leave this place. Has anyone made better progress than I?"

No one said anything, however, which made Futaba let out a long frustrated sigh.

"I was expecting that this might happen," Futaba said. "Then it means that for the time being, we must wait it out until help comes."

"What makes you think help will come?" Murphy asked.

"Well, I'm not sure whether you're aware of my reputation," Futaba said, sounding a bit prouder than usual, "but I am a daughter of the CEO of Inoshishi Enterprises. If someone of such repute were to disappear, the disappearance would be made widely known. I am sure that my father has already bidden that every last man of his security find me."

"Whoa… when you put it that way, it makes me glad that you've gotten kidnapped as well," Sorao joked.

"This whole thing is now a matter of waiting, then!" Red Mask said.

"Well, in the meantime, we're stuck out here," Maiha said. "However long we'll be here, we must have some form of order, must we not?"

"Order?" Haruyuki said. "What do you mean?"

"Well, we surely must not do whatever we want during our time here," Maiha explained, an odd smile on her face. "Too much chaos will lead to an incident that will likely lead to something worse. I've been thinking about this, and it has become clear to me that what we need now is a leader to manage this."

"A leader, huh?" Masashi said. "And you've thought hard about which of us it should be, right?"

"Of course I have," Maiha answered as condescendingly as always. "It should be someone who follows discipline, who has been highly educated, and who is willing to call out any unruly individuals and put them back in their place. Of course, it is I that is the best for the position."

"I don't know about that…" Sorao said. "If you ask me, Futaba's fitter for it."

"Now that you mention it, I can see it now," Faye added, nodding along. "I think Futaba makes a good, able, and apt candidate for leader."

"Is that so?" Futaba said, though less surprised. "Well, I'm quite flattered to hear it."

"Well, it's not surprising to reach that conclusion," Haruyuki said. "After all, you said it yourself not too long ago: you are a daughter of the CEO of Inoshishi Enterprises. You are far more qualified for the position than the rest of us."

"And you have already been telling us what to do," Mari said, "so I think you're already fit for the role."

"And you don't seem mean at all, Lady Futaba!" Kumi said.

As more and more of the students looked to be in agreement with what Mari and the others had said about her, Futaba let out a modest chuckle. "Oh, I have simply been observing what ought to be done in a situation like this."

"Well, that's already a good token of your leadership, if you ask me," Sister Hikari said.

"Now hang on!" Maiha said while the others seconded her opinion. "Why haven't any of you thought about me?"

"Oh? And what makes you better than she is?" Abraham asked.

"For one, I clearly fulfill all the aforesaid criteria," Maiha replied. "After all, I stand higher than you commoners."

"But are you on the same level as she is?" Sorao asked. "Her father's the CEO of a great business conglomerate. How about yours?"

Maiha grew a bit startled. "My father… Well, he owns a real estate company."

"A real estate company? Is that all? That is much smaller in repute than I thought," Atsushi said. "I see no good ground for your gainsaying, whereupon I say that Futaba be chosen as our leader."

"_What?!_" Maiha said quietly but angrily, her eyes dead set on him as if ready to kill him for his boldness. However much she wanted to protest, though, the others soon seconded Atsushi's call that Futaba be made the leader.

_Well, I think it's clear where this is going_, Masashi thought.

Futaba let out a small smile of gratitude once everyone quieted down. "Very well… I have heard your voices, and it is clear what you want. As your leader, I shall guide you and work as hard as I can to make sure that none of you will become the killing game's victims."

Haruka cried out in glee. "Oh, everything's all right now!"

Many of the others showed relief as well; now that they were in a capable woman's hands, the dread that the killing game had aroused in them was slowly going away. The only one who looked unhappy at this turn of events was Maiha, but she had stopped her protests, hiding her anger behind a glum countenance; even she could read the mood and see that it was too late to gainsay this. In a way, it gladdened Masashi, who was confident that if she were in charge, she would make things worse with her nettlesome mindset.

"Now, then, what's your first order of business?" Sorao asked.

Futaba thought for a moment. "There are things that I should like to set as the rules to follow. But to do that, I shall need some help with that. To wit, I need a deputy to help carry out the rules and anything else at my behest."

"A deputy?" Haruyuki said, interested. "Which of us do you have in mind?"

"I prefer someone that has the tendency to work hard and think seriously about the task at hand," Futaba answered. "Thus, I should like to have you as deputy, Atsushi Morokuzu."

"It is I that is chosen?" Atsushi said, the others also looking as bewildered as he. "Wherefore do you pick me?"

"It's rather simple, truly," Futaba said. "You strike me as a rather able and experienced man that is serious about his discipline. Do you agree with my assessment?"

"Yea, I am quite well respected among my peers and have much experience," Atsushi said, rubbing his chin. "For instance, on archaeologist expeditions, I have taught greenhorns the methodology to follow as well as the weightiness of making sure that they be as responsive and cooperative as possible."

"Wow, that all sounds pretty tough!" Red Mask said.

"It certainly is a great responsibility," Murphy said.

But his somewhat unwelcoming personality was the one thing that made Masashi skeptical that Atsushi was the best fit for deputy. The man seemed prone to dismissing those whose talents he deemed lesser, and so he might easily start arguments with them. But on the other hand, the man was doubtless more qualified for the position than most of the other students here, and his intelligence could be of much use to them. A few others looked unsure of this as well, but not so unsure as to openly gainsay this. Nonetheless, it seemed that Atsushi, after much thought, was keen to become her deputy.

"Very well," Atsushi answered, showing a small yet somewhat snide smile. "I thought that it was inevitable that the killing game would go on, but since you have given me this duty, mayhap things can change. Thence, I swear that I will ward us all on your behalf."

Atsushi let out a soft chuckle. Now that he was in charge and would have to talk with the rest of them much more, he would learn to be a bit less irksome. At least, that was what Masashi hoped.

"There is one thing that I should like to take care of first," Atsushi said. "I still need someone to help me split up the work that is needed, and even if the workload be little, I shall find myself wanting someone to talk to, so I ask that I have mine own helper."

"A reasonable request," Futaba said. "Which of them should you like to have by you?"

"The maiden in the dark-blue hoodie." Atsushi pointed at her. "Mari Anzai, was it?"

"Yes, that's my name," she answered, slightly surprised. "You want me to be your helper?"

"Yea. You seem like a rather shrewd maiden," he answered, his smile widening a little. "Phenology is a good choice to study, for knowledge of the changes wrought by the seasons helps mankind greatly. I believe that you will be of great help to me. Mayhap we shall talk about something related to my field of work later."

"I… would like that." Mari now looked much more interested. "All right, I'll be your helper."

Atsushi chuckled. "As I thought. Rest assured that you have made a wise choice. I look forward to working with you."

Once Masashi thought about it, it was not too surprising to see that Atsushi wanted Mari as his assistant; the archaeologist had chided him for not having focused his time on an academic subject, and Mari not only had an academic talent but also was rather easy and mellow. Arashi might fulfill the former criterion with his knowledge of pyrotechnics, but given his childishness, Masashi could hardly blame Atsushi for choosing to avoid him.

"It has only been a few minutes, and the bureaucracy has already widened. How interesting..." Haruyuki remarked. Now that he mentioned it, Masashi too wondered at how quickly that had happened.

"Are we done yet?" Arashi asked, irked. "I wanna eat dinner already!"

Futaba, however, shook her head. "There is one more matter that I think we must talk about. I have been wondering why this killing game is even being held in the first place."

"Didn't you ask Monokuma that earlier?" Abraham asked.

"Yes, but he gave me no answer." Futaba sighed. "It was quite frustrating to waste my time like that. But even if he won't tell me, I can still try to ascertain the answer. I have a theory that the killing game has something to do with us."

"Us? What's there to talk about?" Sayua said dismissively. "We're only a bunch of strangers that some madman's kidnapped!"

"I should agree with you if it weren't for the one inkling of uncertainty in my mind," Futaba replied. "I wonder… do we truly not know one another?"

"Well, two of us know each other, that's for sure."

It was none other than Sorao, who looked unbothered by the gazes that he had now drawn.

"Wait… you already know one of us?" Futaba said, a bit peeved. "Then why are we learning this _now?_"

"I mean, I haven't mentioned it, but it's not as if it were a great secret or anything. There simply was no right time to bring it up," Sorao said relaxedly. "I guess it's the same for my buddy. He's said nothing about it, after all. But then again, he's more of the quiet kind. Don't you agree, Tanjiro?"

All eyes were directed at the historical novelist, whose face had whitened a bit and whose cheeks had reddened as well.

"Y-Yeah, that's right…" Tanjiro said meekly. "Sorao and I… have known each other for a long time."

"There you go, buddy!" Sorao said gladly, touching a fringe of red hair over his right eye. "You see? That wasn't so hard now."

Now this was a surprise. Neither of them had mentioned a connection with each other when Masashi had first met them. And not only did the two look nothing alike, but the two also acted unalike as well. It was uncanny to see how much the two went against each other.

"What is your exact relationship?" Futaba asked seriously.

"Well, he and I, uh, are… hmm…" Tanjiro said, gazing aimlessly.

"Childhood friends, in a way," Sorao answered as he walked toward the writer. "We live right in the same apartment block, so it's only natural that we see each other a lot. But since we grew up together, I'm more like an extended family member of his."

"I-I wish you hadn't put it that way," Tanjiro said, sweeping away the bangs of his blue hair over his left eye, his face full of dismay.

"Well, what's wrong with that?" Sorao said jokingly as he got near him. "If I were truly family, I'd think you'd be delighted since you surely can't be one of _those_ people."

"Wh-What kind of people?" Kumi asked, confused.

"You know, the ones who feel inadequate from seeing those who outshine them," Sorao answered casually. "Doesn't it make you wonder—"

"That's enough out of you." Futaba looked none too amused by where the conversation had headed. "We simply need to know whether there are any connections among us. There is no need for further chatter."

Sorao groaned, though looking none too dreary about it. "All right, all right, I'll lay it off. It's at least swell to see that you and I are in this together, right, Tanjiro?"

"Speak for yourself…" Tanjiro mumbled.

Futaba shook her head disapprovingly. "Anyway, are there more of you related to each other?"

No one else, however, answered her. It could, of course, be the case that there was a connection, but the ones involved in it were unwilling to divulge it. But Masashi preferred the simpler answer that Sorao and Tanjiro were the only ones who had a connection to each other. He saw no reason why such a connection would need to be hidden, anyway.

"If that is all," she said, sounding somewhat disappointed, "then I am truly at a loss as to why we have all been chosen for this. We have nothing in common besides our being Ultimates, but even then, there are thousands of Ultimates living in Japan. I see nothing particularly special about us."

"Then maybe my being here with Tanjiro is simply a coincidence," Sorao suggested.

"It may be," Futaba said. "I suppose that for now, we must make do with the explanation that we have simply been chosen at random for this."

No one gainsaid her explanation. As far as he could tell, Futaba was right about this; there was no reason why he of all people had been kidnapped and put here. Still, there was something about it that bothered him about this; it might be that he was simply a random choice for a player of the killing game, but could he say the same for everyone else?

_Well, in any case, it doesn't matter,_ Masashi thought. _This whole thing will be over without any problems._

"Now, then," Futaba said, looking at the clock in this room, "it is fifteen minutes past seven. It is high time that we ate dinner."

Sister Hikari and Faye headed to the kitchen while the others sat down and began to talk. It was good to see that some form of order had been established, given that things might get out of control, even should no one die. The only one who looked none too happy was Maiha, who sat at a table by her lonesome and had her gaze fixed at Futaba, Maiha's eyes showing a somewhat eerie calmness.

* * *

**Well, the first chapter has begun. I'm looking forward to exploring how the cast interact with one another and how the group dynamics work. I already have some ideas as to what will happen in this chapter, but I'm still working it out. In the meantime, now that you've seen a bit more of the characters, I'm curious as to what you now think of them, given that a few of them have been given certain roles in the cast, and you've seen a few of the group dynamics starting to form.**

**Also, it was interesting that some of you thought that there was a certain meaning behind the ordering of the students in the list. I hate to break it to you, but it's random. The only intentional placement that I made was having Masashi be the first one, and I did that only because he's the protagonist. The list is meant to mimic the students' placement in the list at the end of each chapter in the games, which is why the group of male students and the group of female students aren't neatly set next to each other.**


	6. The Woodland King Comes (2)

However much he did not want to be here, Masashi at least was glad that he and the others had food. It was important to take care of his basic needs, and he felt especially hungry, given that he had eaten nothing for the last few hours. A while later, Sister Hikari and Faye came out of the kitchen and said that the food was ready, but since there were many dishes—the food was for eighteen students, after all—she needed help in serving them.

"Well, that's no problem," Futaba said before eyeing a certain student. "Abraham, is it? You work as a waiter if I remember correctly. I believe that this is a time when we need your services."

The waiter let out a small sigh. "I suppose there's nothing better for me to do now. Very well, I'll do it."

Abraham walked into the kitchen, and a minute or so later, he came out holding two trays that had sundry dishes of food. But it was not so much the food that caught Masashi's attention as it was the waiter, who was smiling. The smile looked normal, but given that he had hitherto smiled not even once, it looked a bit off at first.

"Well, I believe we've all waited long enough!" Abraham said merrily. "Even with this whole kidnapping affair, we should enjoy a few good dishes now, don't you think?" He then began to set the students their dishes. "Here you go! I hope you'll enjoy the meal!"

"W-Wow… Thank you," Masashi said as he looked at his dish of rice and grilled fish and his bowl of miso soup. It was simpler than what he usually ate, but given the circumstances, he thought it best that he not complain.

"Aw, there's no meat!" Arashi whined.

"You seem to be quite a meat-eater, don't you?" Abraham said, chuckling. "Maybe next time, I'll show you a few items to chew on."

"Literally or figuratively?" Sorao asked.

"Well, given how much he wants to eat already, I'm sure he wants me to be literal!" Abraham answered jokingly, the pyrotechnician looking a bit embarrassed as a few others chuckled at Abraham's jab at him.

"You know, you ought to be like this more!" Kumi said. "You'd be much kinder that way!"

Though a few others looked a bit aghast at Kumi's unwitting jab at him, unexpectedly, Abraham let out a merry chuckle. "Certainly not the first time I've heard that!"

Abraham looked so merry and carefree that Masashi could hardly imagine him to be the same man whom he had met hours ago. There was neither any swearing nor standoffishness, as if he were a hound that had lost its viciousness upon seeing its master come back from work.

_Come to think of it, when I first met him, he said that he was free to be rude since he wasn't working then,_ Masashi thought. _Then this must be what he's like when he works..._

His attitude certainly felt true enough to make any unaware customer believe that he was usually like this. It was quite a marvel to see how effortless he had shifted to his workplace personality. Now Masashi could see for himself how the man had become the Ultimate Waiter.

"Abraham, I see no dish for you," Atsushi pointed out. "Have you by chance forgotten it?"

The waiter shook his head, keeping his calm smile. "No, no, I told Sister Hikari that she ought to have my dish. I do not wish to eat."

"And why is that?" Atsushi asked, eyeing him warily. "Do you not see that it is dinnertide right now?"

"Well, you see… it is the customer and not the waiter that is meant to do the eating," Abraham answered, showing no signs of anger. "Please do not worry about me. Rest assured that I will feed myself later."

"There is no need to make a fuss out of this," Futaba said. "It is normal for the staff to feed themselves after their betters are fed. He is simply following the proper order of things."

Atsushi showed a slight scowl for a second before sighing. "Very well, but be aware that it is your duty to keep up your basic needs. Starvation is one of the starkest dangers to betide unready explorers, and we are truly lucky to have food given us, though it comes from the wretched bear."

The students that had their food began to eat. Though the meal was rather simple, Masashi found it enough to stave off his hunger. Once dinner was done, Abraham went to the kitchen and came back with dishes with dessert, which looked like two pieces of bun stacked together and covered in chocolate and was what Faye called a _religieuse_.

"I hope you'll love it!" Faye said to Sister Hikari as Abraham handed her the dish. "After all, the name is French for 'nun'."

"Oh, it does?" Sister Hikari chuckled. "I can somewhat see the resemblance."

Arashi took a bite of it, after which his eyes glinted with glee, and he finished the rest of it so quickly that he had quite a bit of chocolate left on his lips. "S-So yummy! I wish I could have more!"

Faye giggled. "I'm glad that you like it! It pleases me to see that my prowess has not gone to waste."

"With that skill, maybe you ought to start a business," Murphy suggested as he ate a piece of the pastry. "You cook well, that's for sure."

"Oh, I would, but my family and I already have our own business," Faye replied. "We run a bakery, and when we get out of here, maybe I shall show you around."

After all were done with their desserts, Sister Hikari gathered the dishes and headed to the kitchen. Though Futaba suggested that Abraham help her, in the end, the good nun insisted that she do it alone, saying that she did not mind cleaning up after others.

"Very well," Futaba said as she glanced at the clock. "It is about eight o'clock. There is nothing else to talk about, so the rest of you are free to do whatever you want. However, I ask that you go to bed around ten."

"And why do you say that?" Tanjiro asked.

"Nighttime begins at ten o'clock," she answered. "Though the rules set by Monokuma do not say that we cannot be out at nighttime, I think it best that we have it as a rule anyway. We ought to go to sleep at a set time, anyway."

"But how do you plan to enforce this rule?" Haruyuki asked, a few others looking skeptical as well.

"Well, I only trust that you will follow it," Futaba answered. "It would be rather unfeasible to have someone stay up to enforce this."

"And I'm not exactly sure why anyone would want to go out at night," Sorao added. "There's nothing new to do here at nighttime."

No one raised any objections to Futaba's rule. Though it would not be enforced, Masashi thought it wise to follow it; not only was he a bit tired, but he also found nothing of interest to do at nighttime anyway.

Once Futaba dismissed everyone, Masashi and a few others headed to the fourth deck, where all the bedrooms were. It was a bit unfortunate that his door happened to be the farthest from the stairs, but to whine about where his bedroom was seemed quite unfitting in these circumstances. Before Masashi should unlock his door, he checked to see which student was his neighbor. To his dismay, the door to the right was Abraham Zargari's, who was among the ones whom he was less keen to talk to. The door opposite to Masashi's was Maiha Hanazawa's, so his bedroom's location seemed even more unfortunate now.

The door unlocked with his keycard, Masashi headed inside and saw the familiar orange floral wallpaper and the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The room still felt much greater than it ought to be for an ordinary student like him, but he begrudgingly admitted that it was swell to have these good accommodations at the very least.

Masashi spotted the closet by a wooden desk opposite to his king-sized bed. By the closet stood the same mirror that he had used to check his appearance. In the closet were several outfits identical to the one that he now wore; it was a shame that he had no different outfits to try on, but it was good that he at least had some spare ones to use. The desk, on which he had found his Monopad, had nothing else, but that was no problem.

To the bed's right was a red curtain. He had not opened it the first time around, given that he had been more concerned about getting out of here, but now that he was stuck here, he might as well make his room look sweller. He opened the curtain, which revealed a window showing the sea as well as the starry heavens. It was a rather pretty look, and it was good that the weather right now was calm and steady. Moreover, to the bed's left were a small monitor on the wall and the door to the bathroom. It was altogether unremarkable, having the basic essentials, though there was a laundry machine right by the sink as well as a sign over the toilet.

"'Water is on all day, all night, so relax whenever you want'," he read. "'If you have any problems with the bathroom, please call out Captain Monokuma's name thrice'."

Seeing nothing else to check, Masashi then took a shower, shut the curtain, and headed right off to bed. At least the shower had hot water, and the bed felt comfortable enough to sleep in. It might be silly to look at things like that, but in the end, it was better to think positively.

* * *

"Good morning, dear passengers! Time to get up and have another merry day!"

It was Monokuma, who had spoken through the monitor. He was sitting on a seat with red cushioning and was wearing the same captain's outfit as he had worn the first time that he had appeared.

Masashi groaned as he got up from bed. He looked at the clock by his counter and saw that it was seven o'clock. It seemed that Monokuma would wake the students up whenever morning began. On the bright side, it meant that Masashi did not need to set his alarm clock anymore.

Once he readied himself, he left his room, his Monopad and the keycard on his person. When he was outside, he saw Futaba and Atsushi standing by the blossoms.

"Good morrow," the archaeologist said. "You are up rather early. Have you slept well?"

"Oh, yeah, no problems," Masashi said, glad that he had had a good night's sleep.

"Then I assume that you did not break curfew last night," Futaba said.

"No, not at all. In fact, I think I went to bed early," Masashi said. "Why, did someone go ahead and break the rules?"

"As far as I know, no," she answered. "I simply wish to find out whether you had not forgotten about the curfew. There are a few of you that I suspect of being a bit… unwitting."

"Oh, I see…" Masashi had a pretty good idea as to which students she meant. Those like Kumi and Arashi seemed to fit the bill. "Has anything new happened?"

Futaba shook her head, sighing. Even when she looked underwhelmed, however, something about her gave off an air of elegance. "No… No new developments have taken place. And my father's forces still have not found us yet. It is to be expected, however, since I suspect that our kidnappers have gone out of their way to hide our whereabouts."

"Then what are you doing now?"

"We wait for Mari to awaken," Atsushi answered. "Afterwards, we talk about today's plans. In the meantime, you are to hie to the dining room and eat breakfast. 'Tis no problem for you, I should think."

On one hand, Masashi wished that Atsushi had told him that less coldly, given that he still came off as a bit unfriendly. But on the other hand, this had gone much better than their last meeting, so on the whole, this was a good enough start.

Masashi bade the two goodbye and began his way to the dining room. Along the way, however, on the third deck, he saw Hikari standing by the lounge door.

"Hey, are you all right?" Masashi asked.

She looked none too happy to see him. "Wh-What is it to you, a-anyway?"

"Well, aren't you going to go get breakfast?"

Hikari looked even glummer. "I-I will… after the others leave."

"But why?"

"I-I don't like eating with others," she answered. "I-I had no choice last night, b-but it's different this time."

Much as he wondered why she did not seem to like others' company, Masashi suspected that Futaba and Atsushi might chide her later for not following their instructions. It was best to save her some grief.

"Well, even then, you can still eat by yourself," Masashi suggested. "You can sit at a separate table and tell others you're not interested in talking."

The spirit channeler looked bemusedly at him for a few seconds before sighing. "A-All right… I'll try that out."

She then headed toward the garden dejectedly. Though he wanted to go to the dining room with her, since she did not want any company right now, he thought to wait a short while before he went forwards. After some time, Masashi resumed, only to see a certain girl coming out from the shop.

"Oh, hey, Masashi!" It was Haruka, the pink-haired clown, showing a wide smile. "I didn't expect to run into you! Then again, I didn't really do much running!"

"Yeah, it was more like swift walking," Masashi remarked. "What were you doing in there?"

"Oh, I was only checking to see whether there were any shiny objects there!" she answered brightly. "Kumi said that it would help us greatly in our hunt for fairies!"

"Really? How?" he asked as he and Haruka walked together through the garden.

Haruka looked off elsewhere. "Well… if I remember correctly, he said that fairies were attracted to shiny things. That's why if we have something shiny, it'll be easier to catch us them!"

"Huh, is that so…" Masashi said. "So, uh, how long do you plan to flatter him like this?"

Haruka turned a bit more serious. "Well, it's hard to tell. After traveling a lot with my group of fellow performers, I can tell you that children sure are such imaginative and impressionable beings. I'm pretty sure Kumi likes fairies and other fantastic creatures a lot right now, but eventually, he'll move on to something else!"

Still, Masashi wondered how deep Kumi's belief in fairies was. It might be that the "fairies" were simply something that he attributed to things that he could not explain, but from the few times he had talked to him so far, for some reason, Masashi could not but think that he truly believed that they were among us.

_Oh, well_, he thought, _at least he's not up to anything bad or reckless._

When the two arrived at the dining room, he saw only a few of the others there. Kumi was there, happily beckoning Haruka to join him. Masashi noticed that Kumi's satchel, which he usually wore over his shoulder, was now beside him and open, a bunch of parchment sticking out therefrom, a bottle of ink on the table. He seemed ready to write anything that he could turn into a tale, whatever the occasion might be. Hikari sat at another table, slowly and gloomily eating her breakfast while she watched the storyteller. After Masashi went to the kitchen and got some toast to eat, one of the other students greeted him.

"Ah, good morning, Masashi. Would you like to join us for breakfast?" It was Haruyuki, who was sitting at another table. Interestingly, sitting opposite to him was Red Mask, the phantom thief.

"Uh, sure," Masashi answered, wondering what was up with them both. "What are you two doing?"

"Oh, I've been talking about my daring heists!" Red Mask answered blithely. "I was about to talk about one of my most well known ones!"

"It was the Mona Lisa," Haruyuki answered. "It interests me to hear the perspective of another kind of person about art… even if it is a thief's perspective."

Red Mask giggled. "And let me tell you, it was a doozy! Since I had already sent the curator my calling card, she and the French police had worked together to try to ward me off with many security measures! Besides personnel and security cameras, they also had complex laser systems, temperature sensors, motion sensors, you name it!"

"And how did you overcome them?" Haruyuki asked.

"Ah, you'd like to know, wouldn't you?" she replied. "But you can check it out for yourself later! After all, I livestreamed the whole thing!"

"You _livestreamed_ it?!" Masashi said, having just swallowed his piece of toast.

"Yep! Let me tell you, to have a camera on me the whole time made things a tad bit hard!" she answered. "But I had to do it! It was my sixteenth birthday, and I wanted as many as possible to celebrate it with me!"

Now that he thought hard about it, he had seen something about a theft and a video while he had surfed through a few online forums, but given how uninteresting the subject had seemed, he had naturally ignored it. Now he was all too curious about what exactly was on her video.

"Oh… It would be lovely if the video were available to us right now..." Haruyuki said, looking a bit disappointed. "It is one thing to hear the account, but when there is video footage of it, I cannot but wish to see how it went down."

"I'm surprised you're interested in seeing it," Masashi commented. "Given that it was the Mona Lisa that was stolen, I'd think you'd be more outraged that she stole a valuable piece of art. You are an art critic, right?"

"Ah, I can see why you would reach that conclusion. But let me tell you, the Mona Lisa may be a masterpiece, but its theft bothers me little," Haruyuki said, adjusting his gray scarf. "In fact, I can see that you too wish that you could see it. But might I ask you why?"

"Well… I only wonder how in the world the whole thing unfolded," Masashi said. "It sounds so unbelievable, but it happened, and I'd like to see how."

Haruyuki nodded, his eyes showing his keenness. "Interesting… Mind you, this is only my opinion, but I want to watch it, for I should greatly like to see what it was like to sneak into a highly fortified museum under the cover of darkness."

Masashi looked dumbfoundedly at him. "Uh, that's… interesting."

"How can it not be interesting? It's an experience that is seldom captured for the public to see," he answered. "However… until I actually see the video, I am afraid that I cannot truly evaluate it."

"Evaluate?" Red Mask said, both amused and a bit confused. "Boy, you sure are funny, saying the word 'evaluate', when it's only a video of my exploit! If you're looking for art to evaluate, you should join me the next time I steal something from an art museum!"

"Oh, no, you have it wrong," Haruyuki said, quite passionate about this subject. "You have the impression that your video cannot be art. But to me, art is more than paintings. Art is anything that awakens in us a great feeling, one that deeply touches our souls."

"That's… interesting," Masashi said once more, unable to find other words to describe this man's line of thought. "So, uh, would you deem words to be art?"

"Hmm… Perhaps," Haruyuki answered. "They may make me feel interested, but my interest is not in the words' contents but in their expression, as it were. Rhetoric can be beautiful on its own if we do not let the content's morality stand in our way. That much is clear when we can find even the words of the evilest of men to be hauntingly alluring. Think of it as akin to calligraphy: a man can write about the most mundane of things, but even then, we are more concerned about the flow and feeling in which the characters are written. The meaning is secondary."

"When you put it that way… it kind of makes sense," Masashi said, astounded. It all was so strange and unfamiliar that Masashi could not but think him to be a man beyond his level of intelligence. He must have put in a lot of thought into how he critiqued art, and his line of thinking extended far beyond what one would normally think to be art; it truly reflected how he saw things in general. However strange he might be, Masashi nonetheless found himself more interested in his opinion.

"Well, I still don't get it, but you sure have some interesting thoughts in that head of yours!" Red Mask replied.

Haruyuki chuckled before he ate more of his bowl of rice. "I can tell from the looks of your faces that you did not expect me to talk about it. Well, I suppose that this does not make for rather good breakfast talk. Shall we talk about something more… relatable?"

"I'd like that very much," Masashi answered. Intriguing as Haruyuki was, he had wanted to chat with him about something more everyday.

"Very well," Haruyuki said a bit more quietly. "Let us talk about… last night. Red Mask, would you care to tell us why you broke curfew?"

"Wait, what?" Masashi once more glanced at him bemusedly, not having expected the conversation to turn to this topic. "What do you mean, broke curfew?"

"Y-Yeah!" Red Mask chuckled nervously. "Wh-What makes you think that?"

"It was only a hunch. Of all the students here who would break a rule, none are as willing as the phantom thief, if you ask me," Haruyuki explained. "And let me assure you, if you break your silence on this matter, I will say nothing about this to the leadership. I assume that Masashi will do the same."

Masashi felt a bit tenser once the other two looked at him. "Uh, that's right! I promise that I won't tell anyone about it."

"Well… if that's what you say, then I guess I'll speak a bit freely." Red Mask looked about warily before facing her two listeners. "Well, I hate to say it, but you've got me. I was indeed out and about last night."

"But why?" Masashi asked. "Don't you think it's best to follow what Futaba and Atsushi say in this situation?"

"Well, maybe for you, but I'm not that kind of girl!" Red Mask answered. "I thought that I could find something if I looked around the place. Specifically, I was looking at the locked door on the second deck."

Now that he recalled, there was a door with a great golden lock on it in the starboard hallway. He had unsuccessfully tried to open it, but had wondered what the room's contents might be.

"Well, had you any luck?" Haruyuki asked.

"I wish I could tell you that I did!" Red Mask said. "I can pick normal locks, but even I can do nothing about electronic ones. You can try your luck with the hidden keypad on it if you want to guess what the code may be."

Then unless the group somehow found the passcode, there was no way that they could get in. Given the room's security, Masashi was near certain that whatever was inside was of high worth and might help them leave this place.

"Hmm… How disappointing," Haruyuki mumbled.

"Oh, but I haven't even gotten to the good part!" Red Mask snickered mischievously. "You see, on the way back to my room, I saw a certain someone heading back to the rooms as well, and who should it be but the archaeologist himself!"

"Wh-_What?_" Masashi said. "Are you sure it was Atsushi?"

Thankfully, the other students had not paid attention not only because they had been busy with their own conversations, but also because the chatter was loud enough to stop the others from accidentally overhearing.

"Dead certain!" Red Mask answered. "He was even looking about all warily and whatnot. If he had been simply looking around, there would've been no need to be all that wary, if you ask me."

"And I take it that he did not see you," Haruyuki said.

"Of course! I'm a mistress of stealth!" she replied. "The man came out from the merry-go-round room. Had I not felt tired, I would've checked what was up with that, so whatever's hidden in that room is a complete mystery to me."

"Huh, really…" Masashi said.

On one hand, it was rather strange that Atsushi had wanted to hide whatever he had found from the rest of the group. It seemed that not even Futaba knew of this, given that she herself had told Masashi that no new developments had happened, and she did not seem like an untruthful woman. But on the other hand, Masashi wondered what exactly Atsushi had been up to, and if he were to tell Futaba and the others about this, then the secret might disappear. Of course, there was the possibility that the thief was making a great deal out of nothing.

_All the more reason to check it out_, he thought. To draw his own conclusions, he ought to at least investigate it for himself. Even if it should be nothing, only his own investigation could satisfy his curiosity.

"Are you planning to check it out tonight?" Masashi asked her.

"Well… I would, but I can tell from your eyes that you also want to check it out!" Red Mask said. "Care to join me, then?"

"Ah, sorry, but I think it'll be best if I do it alone," Masashi said, having a gut feeling that she might somehow cause some trouble if he had her around. And moreover, she stole things as part of her talent. Who was to say that she would not take whatever she would find and keep it a secret? "Could you please stay in your room tonight so that I may look around by myself?"

For a moment, Red Mask looked a bit underwhelmed, but no sooner had he noticed that than her face brightened.

"Oh, well, if you do me a little something, then I'll agree. I won't even ask you what you'll have found."

"Wh-What is it?" Masashi asked, sensing that she was up to something.

"You see Arashi at the table over there?" Red Mask pointed to Arashi, who was eating a bagel and was sitting by Maiha, though neither of them paid each other any heed. The thief then took out a soft drink cup, whose contents Masashi could not see. "Give him this, and I'll stay put in my room tonight."

"It's nothing dangerous, is it?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, of course not! I have a strict policy of never killing anyone!" Red Mask answered blithely. "Just tell him that it's only a cup of soda."

Masashi had a sneaking suspicion that this would still not end well. Nonetheless, since he saw no other way to get her to agree to it, he thought to do as he was bidden. He grabbed the cup and headed over to Arashi's table, after which he offered him it.

"Huh?" The blond pyrotechnician looked up and widened his eyes at the cup. "That's for me?"

"Yeah, Red Mask told me to give you it," Masashi answered, trying to hide his dread.

"Well, all right, then! I've wanted to get myself a drink!"

Arashi snatched the drink and sipped on the straw. A second later, however, his eyes widened in shock, he began coughing.

"Wh-What the hell is this?!" Arashi yelled amidst his coughing, now angry as Masashi had feared. "What the hell have you made me drink?!"

Maiha, irked, took the cup and looked into its contents. "You truly are a witless commoner. The straw was put into a jar of apple cider vinegar."

"_WHAT__?!_" Arashi exclaimed, at which point Red Mask began to laugh merrily, and the other students' attention was now on the pyrotechnician and the phantom thief.

"The look on your face is priceless!" Red Mask said amid her laughter. "Oh, if I had a camera, I'd snap myself a shot!"

Arashi scowled even more, his eyes dead set on her. "You… _You'll pay for this!_"

At once, he leapt from his seat and ran toward Red Mask, his hands clenched into fists and ready to deal her a few blows. But as soon as he neared her, Red Mask rushed to the side, guffawing. The two continued their silly chase, running throughout the dining room, while the others either found mirth from the sight or showed much frustration at the two troublemakers. Nonetheless, the damage that they had done was a few chairs and tables knocked over, which unfortunately made the dining room less tidy. Eventually, they ran out of the room, just as Sorao came in.

"Whoa, what's going on?" he asked the bemused students.

"Two witless commoners have been engaging in tomfoolery," Maiha answered, none too amused.

Though still puzzled, Sorao asked no further questions and went into the kitchen to get himself breakfast. Not long after, once the students cleaned up the mess that the two had left behind, things went back to normal, and they resumed whatever they had been doing.

_Out of sight, out of mind, indeed_, Masashi thought as he sat by Haruyuki once more.

"Well, that was a fun little diversion," the art critic said. "In any case, I expect that Red Mask will uphold her promise and stay in her room tonight."

"And what about you?" Masashi asked. "Are you interested in checking it out with me?"

"No. Though the topic interests me a little, I am much more interested in observation," Haruyuki answered as he finished the last of his breakfast. "Generally, I wish to involve myself in the group's affairs as little as I can. It gives me much more freedom during our time here."

The more he talked to him, the more befuddled Masashi became. On one hand, there was undeniably something off about him, and the art critic himself seemed aware of it, as he had correctly read the conversation's mood earlier. But on the other hand, much of what he said fascinated Masashi, and even if he disagreed with his opinion, there was something about it that made Masashi want to talk to him more.

"In that case, why did you bring up the subject of last night?" Masashi asked.

"It was small talk. I thought the topic of her breach of curfew to be insignificant, since my impression was that there was nothing worthwhile looking for at nighttime. But truly, she surprised me with her revealing that she had seen Atsushi. That you now have plans to look into the matter is an interesting but unintended turn of events."

Strange he was, indeed. Masashi could not say certainly whether he was friend or foe, but at the very least, he had helped him here, so he could deem him a friend.

"I look forward to seeing how things unfold," Haruyuki said. "I wonder what feelings this killing game will awaken in you."

* * *

Not long after Masashi finished his breakfast, Futaba, Atsushi, Mari, and the rest of the students came into the room. Once things settled down, Futaba called for everyone's attention. She began with the fact that help still had not come. Though Masashi had already known that, it seemed that a few others had not been told, for Faye and Hikari bemoaned that they had to stay here. Nevertheless, their complaints quieted down once it became clear that they could only wait.

"Now, then," Futaba said, "Atsushi and I have talked about the guidelines that we ought to follow while we are here. First, if anything odd should happen, you are to inform your peers at once. We cannot afford to let anything strange, be it small or great, go unattended.

"Secondly, if any of you should have a great dispute about something, you are to inform me or Atsushi. We have the power to arbitrate any cases and decide what the appropriate judgment is.

"Thirdly, you are not to engage in wanton destruction of any property. If any case of this should occur, you are expected to report it to any of us as well as the culprit's identity."

Right away, a few of the students glanced at Arashi and Red Mask, the former of whom looked not at all pleased.

"And lastly, you are not to resort to violence to solve your problems. Were we to let you be violent, the situation could easily escalate, and we should find ourselves falling into our captain's trap. Now, then, are there any questions?"

Though some looked a bit skeptical of what their new rules now meant for them, in the end, none gainsaid them, so the leadership's decision passed without a hitch. Afterwards, Futaba dismissed everyone, and all the students headed their own ways.

Unsurprisingly, sometime after, as Masashi headed back to his room, he saw Atsushi talking to Arashi and Red Mask at the third deck's garden, and the archaeologist looked rather displeased, standing by the aperture connected to the fourth deck's ceiling.

"You two are gone too far," Atsushi said, arms crossed, giving them the evil eye. "I bade you do such a simple thing as eat breakfast, and somehow, you erred!"

"I-It wasn't my fault!" Arashi said, pointing at the thief. "She made me drink vinegar!"

"I care not for what you may say," Atsushi said, looking awfully dismissive. "You are gone too far, forsooth. 'Tis fitting that I punish you."

"Oh, and what are you going to do?" Red Mask asked, paying him little heed.

Atsushi let out a scoff. "You seem not to take me seriously. Nay, that will not do. I ought to show you the aftermath of your recklessness. For the rest of the day, you shall stay in your rooms, wherefore tonight, you shall not eat dinner in the dining hall. Instead, I will have some of the others ward your doors."

"Aw, do you really have to do that?" Red Mask said, looking a bit irked, but overall not too bothered. She likely had no plans for the rest of the day or had some way to circumvent this, given her sneakiness. The same, however, could not be said for Arashi.

"Y-You mean I won't get to eat any of Miss Nirigiri's treats?!" Arashi said angrily. "You can't do this!"

"Ah, but you are mistaken. As the deputy, I can, and I will. Howbeit, I shall have others send you some simple dishes. Thereby, you will not starve from want of food. Deem this loss of luxury in your dinner to be the punishment for your witless wrath, and think about how to be careful in your deeds."

"But—"

"I will have no more of your horseplay! Do both of you foolhardy jackanapes understand? Or shall I make it clearer by lengthening your punishment?"

Arashi opened his mouth, ready to protest, but a few seconds later, he shut it, his gainsaying at a stop.

However harsh it might be, Masashi could see why Atsushi would have that attitude toward them. Red Mask was nothing but a troublesome prankster, even if she had no evil in her heart. And much as he hated to say it, from the very beginning, Arashi had shown himself to be startlingly quick to use violence. From the looks of things, even he could see that it was best that he keep his mouth shut. Though this period of obedience might be but a short spell, Atsushi would take care of that problem, and as long as it kept order, Masashi would not gainsay the man's bidding.

In any case, Masashi wondered at the absoluteness in which Atsushi had bidden them follow his order; having heard him enforce one of the new rules very strictly without any hesitation, he felt ever so willing to listen to his authority. Of course, that would not stop him from delving tonight into whatever the man might be hiding. Curiosity came first.

* * *

**And here's the next chapter! Nothing too exciting has happened yet, but as you can tell, that will soon change. This chapter's meant to show off a bit more of the characters, so the motive will be shown later. And of course, all of this is buildup to the killing, which I've already planned out.**

**In the meantime, thank you ever so much for your reviews! One part that makes writing this fun is seeing your reactions and guesses, and it'll be fun to look back at things in hindsight.**


	7. The Woodland King Comes (3)

Until nighttime came, Masashi had nothing else to do. He might as well hang out with some of the others and get to know them a bit better, if he wanted to make full use of his free time.

He walked over to the main deck, the heavens shining as brightly as always, the clouds gently going by. Here as well were Maiha, who stood by the pool; Murphy, who looked out at the calm seas; and Kumi, who seemed to be looking for fairies yet again. He had no interest in her company, and he knew that she thought likewise for his. Though Murphy was a bit kind, he gave off the impression that he hardly wanted to be bothered even for small talk. Therefore, his best chances were with Kumi, childish though he was.

"Ah, Sir Masashi!" Kumi said once Masashi approached him. "Have you come to help me find more pixies? I've been meaning to replenish my supply of magical pixie dust!"

"Uh, sure, why not?" Masashi said. "So what shall I be keeping an eye out for?"

Afterwards, he spent a while with Kumi, watching him go throughout the ship's every deck in search for the mythical creature. Though he was meant to be helping him out, given that Kumi knew far more about the creature than he, Masashi ended up being focused more on him than on any potential fairies. It was amazing to see such great keenness to look for something that was only in the realm of fantastic tales, Kumi not having grown tired ever since the hunt's beginning.

"Oh, Sir Masashi?" Kumi said. "You seem to be having trouble finding fairies. Is there anything wrong?"

Even Kumi would have noticed his inactivity sooner or later. Masashi came up with a quick answer that Kumi would likely believe.

"Sorry, but I've not found any," he answered. "Maybe the fairies don't like me or something."

"Oh, no, no, that can't be it!" the storyteller answered. "I don't sense anything evil on you, Sir Masashi! Fairies may be mischievous creatures, but if there's one thing they can't brook, it's evil!"

"Then why aren't there any fairies?"

"Well… Every now and then, the fairies are busy celebrating. Like men, fairies have their own holidays throughout the year," Kumi answered. "For example, one holiday celebrates the very day that the fairy queen Titania—"

"Ah, that's all fascinating," Masashi said, not wanting him to get carried away with this, "but since there aren't any fairies around, maybe we should take a break."

"A break?" Kumi stopped and thought a bit. "But the hunt is afoot, Sir Masashi! We mustn't tarry a moment longer!"

He ought to have expected a simple request not to go too well with Kumi's mindset. If he wanted something done with him, he must put it in the storyteller's own terms.

"Well, I'd join the hunt if I weren't so tired," Masashi said. "I think that a tale of yours may help energize me."

"Ah, a tale, you say!" Kumi said, delighted. "Well, then, let me tell you the tale of the flaxen-haired maiden who lived alone in a magical forest—"

"Not that kind of tale," he said. Much as he appreciated the creativity that Kumi put in his medieval tales, he wanted to know a bit more about something else. "You tell me many tales, but I've been wanting to hear about the mind behind them."

"Y-You mean... me?" Kumi said, pointing bemusedly at himself.

"Yeah, I'd like to know a bit more about you," Masashi said. "If that's too much to cover, well, how about telling me how you became known as the Ultimate Storyteller?"

For a moment, Kumi only stared at him wonderedly, which hinted that he seldom talked about himself. Talkative though he was, it was funny that he had hardly ever thought about making the conversation's topic about him instead.

"Ah, all right, then!" Kumi said after a short while. "Well, where shall I start… Ah, I became the Ultimate Storyteller when I got a notice for it in the mail. I was pretty shocked to hear that I had a title, but the others said that it was only natural, since I'd already been telling tons of folk my stories."

For a tale about himself, it was rather untidy and unstructured. There was no setting of the scene, nor was there anything to interest him in the tale's narrative, which interest generally meant something like introducing an antagonist or revealing a problem that the hero had.

"Wait, you mentioned 'others' earlier," Masashi said. "Who are these others?"

"Oh, they're the other children at the orphanage!"

Masashi raised a brow. Since he belonged to an orphanage, it meant that the boy had lost his parents somehow. But if he were to ask him about it, it would only distract him from the topic at hand, so he needed to set the conversation in the right direction.

"That's pretty interesting," Masashi commented. "I bet the others in the orphanage love your stories."

"Oh, they do!" he answered blithely. "Originally, I wrote stories featuring me and the others at the orphanage. Well, when I say 'featuring', I mean… uh… what's the word?"

"Incorporating?" Masashi suggested, sensing that this was what he meant.

"Yeah, that's it!" Kumi said as he took out his book from his satchel and flipped through its pages. "Like, for example, in one story of mine, a few of my friends and I were a band of adventurers traveling to a distant kingdom hidden in the seas, and the kingdom was the only source of the elixir that could cure the king's daughter of an everlasting sleep cast by the evil warlock known as Sigmund! I was the bard that sang songs that uplifted our group, while another one of my friends was the awesome warrior that could fell any foe with his mighty blade!"

"That sounds wonderful," Masashi said. "You must've worked really hard on your stories."

Kumi chuckled a bit. "Oh, I do work hard, but sometimes, I work a bit _too_ hard. Every now and then, the other children or the orphanage's overseers come to tell me to brush my teeth and not to forget about my meals. I would stop much earlier, of course, if it weren't for the tricks done me by fairies that always make me forget to keep track of time, those silly little creatures!"

There it was again with the fairies. Masashi wondered whether there was nothing in this world that Kumi could not attribute to fairies or other fantastic creatures.

"Well, Sir Masashi?" Kumi said. "Has my story energized you?"

"Uh, it sure has," Masashi said, not wanting to disappoint him. His beliefs might be childish, but as long as they kept him happy and bliss, there was no need to gainsay him.

"Yippee!" Kumi put his book back in his satchel. "Let's get back hunting, Sir Masashi!"

* * *

Masashi next thought to talk to Sorao. He was the first one whom he had met on this ship, and he seemed like a kind enough man to talk to. But when Masashi found him, he was standing by Arashi's door, and he politely declined his offer to hang out with him.

"Sorry, man, but the deputy told me to keep an eye on the hothead's door," Sorao explained. The one who was watching Red Mask's door was Abraham. "Until I'm done with this, you'd better talk with someone else."

It was a bit underwhelming to learn that, but seeing that there was nothing that he could do about this, Masashi headed to the third deck, wanting to see whether someone like Mari or Faye was there. But upon looking around, he found only Haruka in the garden, the clown appearing to be juggling a few balls.

"Oh, hey there!" Haruka said as she stopped and gathered the balls. "What brings you here?"

"I only want to see you're up to," he answered. "It seems you've been practicing."

"Well, I can't let my clown skills get rusty while we're trapped here!" Haruka said. "I have to practice doing my fall after I slip up, for instance!"

"I didn't know falling needed practice."

"Well, it does!" Haruka said. "I can't just fall willy-nilly and hope that I'll end up all right. I might end up breaking my back! You know how hard it is to get a new one?"

_Ah, I can't say I do_, Masashi thought. _Not that I often feel the need to find one, anyway._

"You know, while you're here, you should stay here and watch me!" the clown said. "Not every day that you see a clown practice, is it?"

Though he knew of a few jokers in his everyday life, they were not so professional and dedicated to the craft as the woman before him. It might be interesting to see a clown at work. And Haruka seemed kind enough not to drive him off.

Once Masashi accepted her offer, he was then subjected to a long while of corny jokes, athletic tricks, and comical injury that the clown did herself. Though Masashi chuckled a few times, he was much more impressed by how focused she was in making sure that she should make not even one mistake.

When it was over, Haruka let out a great sigh of relief. "Well, that's that! What do you think?"

"Well, it's pretty professional," Masashi said, though thinking about how odd the word sounded when applied to clowning. "You must've done this loads of times already, since I saw very few mistakes."

At that point, however, Haruka let out a mirthful laugh. "Ah, but that's the thing! I actually made a few more mistakes than you think!"

"What? Are you sure?" Masashi said, again thinking about how weird it sounded. She should be agreeing the more flattering idea that she had been nearly flawless in her performance.

"Oh, I'm sure! I'm not perfect, you know!" Haruka answered. "You see, part of being a good performer is knowing how to get away with flubbing something. If I make a mistake, I'd better make sure the audience doesn't notice it! It takes a lot of improvisation, so I've got to think on my feet!"

Looking back at her performance, Masashi wondered which parts she had messed up on. Almost all of it had looked intentional, but with how entranced he had been, perhaps he had simply overlooked it.

"That's some dedication you've got there," Masashi remarked. "It must've taken a lot of practice to get it all right."

"Aw, thanks! It makes the popped balloons and broken spinning plates all the more worth it!" she replied. "Maybe you should be a clown, Masashi! I think you've got the endurance needed to handle a few hundred falls. And I think you'd look good in a clown's clothes!"

"Ah, no thanks!" Masashi said. Not only did he want to do something that did not draw in laughter and injury, but he also did not see himself as a rather comical man.

"Aw, are you sure?"

"As sure as I can be," he answered. Though he had no exact idea as to what he would like to become, he was sure that becoming a clown was out of the question. "I think you're much fitter for the role than I'll ever be."

"Well, it simply runs in the family," she said. "My grandpa and ma were clowns as well, so I'm only continuing the family tradition."

"Tradition, huh?" Masashi did not expect clowning of all things to become a craft to pass on to one's offspring. "Then you must've practiced really early on in your childhood."

"When I was eight, to be precise!" Haruka said, smiling. "I learned the very basics and fundamentals from the two. Sure, I was laughed at a lot for it at school, but I didn't mind."

"Ah, because a clown's meant to be laughed at."

"Yes, but it's more than that!" Haruka answered. "For my whole childhood, I always admired how many laughs my ma could draw in! She could make the whole audience laugh their pants off! Seeing how she could make others happy… simply amazed me so much that I wanted to be like my mother!"

Masashi nodded along, now much more understanding of the clown. He had thought it weird that Haruka had become a clown of all things, but upon hearing what it meant to be a clown from her, he could see why it had appealed to her.

"Well, time to get back to practice!" Haruka said. "The spinning plates aren't going to spin themselves, you know!"

* * *

"Now what business do you have with me?"

Drinking a cup of tea in the dining room, Futaba looked little bothered by his presence, but Masashi still sensed that she would rather be doing something.

"Oh, well, I would like to talk with you for a bit," Masashi said. "I thought that you might like some company while doing your duties."

Masashi thought it best to know her a bit more. It was not every day that he could talk to a girl of high station, so it would be interesting to see how life for the upper class differed exactly. And unlike Maiha, she seemed kind enough, albeit a bit fussy and pompous.

"You wish to talk with me?" Futaba looked askance at him briefly. "I see… Well, before that, could you clean up the nearby tables? I do so greatly loathe the mess left by the others after a meal."

"Ah, all right."

Masashi went ahead and cleaned the whole dining room up. It was ever so tiresome, but after he saw the fruits of his labor, it made all the work he had done all the more worth it.

"Thank you for the service," Futaba said plainly. "Now then, what should you like to talk about? Business? Finance? Politics?"

"Well, I was hoping that we could talk about something more… everyday," Masashi answered. "For example, what do you do in my daily life?"

"My daily life?" Futaba pondered for a bit, continuing to sip her tea. "Well, usually, around seven o'clock in the morning, a servant wakes me up—"

"Pardon me," Masashi interrupted, "but I did not mean to hear about your schedule. I would like to learn about what you like to do."

"Is that so? Well, I usually practice my ice skating or do some studying on my subjects," she answered plainly. "Before I took up ice skating, whenever I was not occupied with my private education, I often chatted with my older sisters or the servants, and I also played with my younger brother."

However intriguing it might be to learn a bit more about her home life, there was no denying the fact that she sounded rather stiff about it. Even for a simple topic, the atmosphere felt rather imposing, as if speaking out of hand resulted in harsh criticism from the lady. Maybe a change in topic was needed if he wanted her to relax a little.

"I believe that when we first met, you said that you had simply been following in your mother's footsteps by becoming a figure skater," Masashi said.

Futaba raised her eyes a little. "Yes, that is right. I grew interested in figure skating after seeing a few old photographs of her. She herself was surprised that I wanted to have her teach me ice skating."

She sounded a bit less tense and more emotive, so it seemed that when it came to her ice skating career, she felt freer to talk about it.

"That's interesting," Masashi said. "It must've been pretty exciting to deviate from what you planned."

"Planned? Oh, no, I must confess, I formerly had no particular vision for my future," Futaba said. "I was simply expected to go through my education and work however I could to expand our family's conglomerate. In all likelihood, if I had not come up with any plan, I would have been expected to be in charge of one of my family's businesses in the future, so I would be thinking about doing something related to business in college."

_Uh-oh. She's going a bit off-topic,_ Masashi thought.

"Well, I would like to hear about one of your lessons," Masashi said. "For example, how did your first lesson with your mother go?"

"My mother? Oh, no, you are mistaken, I am afraid," she answered. "Though capable of teaching me the craft, she had other obligations to attend to. Thus, she hired a skating instructress to teach me the basics of ice skating."

"Ah, it wasn't your mother that taught you, huh? Did the coach still teach you well?"

But Futaba then shook her head softly. Though she had a look of disapproval on her face, it seemed that it was not directed at Masashi.

"I apologize," she said. "When I thought about the instructress, a few unpleasant memories popped up."

"Oh, did you not have a good time with her?"

"You can put it that way," she said. "She was always critical of my performance and was wont to belittle my every success. I soon learned that she had a slight problem of envy toward my mother. That is, my instructress was once my mother's rival, and so she was a bit displeased to hear that my mother had succeeded where she did not. And I suppose it did not help that my mother wedded a successful businessman."

"It must've been hard for you, then, to have that kind of coach," Masashi said out of sympathy.

"Indeed. I always felt a bit uneasy whenever I heard her voice ready to lambaste me," she said. "And yet, I made no complaint to my father. As an Inoshishi, I was expected to achieve nothing short of perfection. However much I wanted a little help, failing to cleave to my family's standards would simply not do."

_I guess being rich comes with its own set of_ _problems..._ Masashi thought.

"I apologize, but I did not intend to spend as much time with you as I had planned," she said. "I must leave right now, as I need to talk with Atsushi about something."

"O-Oh…"

It seemed that in addition to being fussy, she was also a stickler for cleaving to her schedule, to boot. Nothing about her body language suggested that she had simply grown tired of talking to him, so he was at least glad that he had not left a bad impression on her. And to make sure that the impression should stick, he even offered to wash her the cup from which she had drunk her tea. As expected, she agreed approvingly to the offer before she left.

Coincidentally, right after Futaba left for the starboard hallway, Maiha arrived from the port hallway, which led to the main deck. She did not even take the time to say hello, however, for she headed for the starboard hallway as well.

* * *

"Ahem! It is now 10 p.m., and nighttime has come. Whether you sleep or stay up, it's always time to have fun here at Brightmere Mirthyard!"

Monokuma once again had made an announcement through the monitor. Masashi had been keenly waiting for this moment, as he must know what Atsushi, the deputy, might be hiding from the rest of the group. However small it might be, it would not do if he were left without an answer.

After a while, he headed out and made his way to the merry-go-round room. Thankfully, no one was there to stop him. Masashi thought about the possible places where something might be hidden in this room, and his gut feeling was that it had something to do with the merry-go-round. He checked the merry-go-round, which had several carriages and wooden horses as part of it, but unfortunately, a thorough search of them yielded him nothing, and even the floor seemed to have no secrets to hide.

_Come to think of it,_ Masashi thought, _how does the operator even get the merry-go-round to run anyway?_

His looked around for a panel that controlled the merry-go-round. One was not apparent at first glance, but as there were trees lined up by the walls, he thought to check there as well. Indeed, there was a panel amid some trees on the right wall, but upon further examination, it too showed nothing special.

Just as he began to wonder whether there truly was anything secret to be found, he then saw something off about the grass near the panel. The grass throughout the room looked plain on the whole, a few parts thereof decorated with such things as flowers. But by the panel was a spot of grass that had a yellow mushroom on it. Masashi then looked around the room, wondering whether there were other mushrooms like it. Though there were red ones and white ones scattered here and there, there was no other yellow mushroom. He could hardly think of it to be an arbitrary choice in decoration.

He tried to pull the mushroom out of the panel, thinking that it might be hiding something underneath. Oddly enough, however, the mushroom would not even budge an inch. He then fiddled around with it and discovered that the mushroom was in truth a knob; by his moving it to the right, the panel of grass was revealed to be covering over a metallic panel that had a small door embedded in it. However risky it might be, Masashi had no choice but to open it with his bare hands, if he wanted to see what was inside.

Inside the panel was none other than a red button. It was simply begging to be pressed, so there was no hesitation in his mind when he did the deed. Not long after, a rumble came from another part of the room.

_Ah!_ Masashi thought, eyeing with wonder at the wall opposite to the door. By the wall was usually a billboard that listed information about the sundry facilities offered on this ship, but to his surprise, the wall itself had shifted, revealed to be truly a revolving door. At once, Masashi's curiosity waxed. He covered the panel back with the grassy decoration and headed through the door.

What he had imagined to await him was something like a hidden room full of strange equipment and having something that could tell him why this killing game was held in the first place. A hidden room must be of great weightiness, after all, if there had been efforts to keep it hidden. But to his further surprise, it was nothing like that. What awaited him instead was a narrow passageway both of whose sides were lined with shelves filled with books. The passageway went forwards at first before taking a turn to the left, from which direction came a bit of lighting. It seemed to be a private library of some kind.

After he stepped inside, he looked at the bookshelves for a short while and saw something odd on the bookshelf on his right. There was one space where no books occupied it at all, and the space looked wide enough to be filled by two books of average size. At the very back in this space was a red button. It was yet another thing that he could not but want to press.

Just as he was about to do it, however, without any warning, the revolving door moved back to its normal position.

"Wait, no!" Masashi exclaimed. Panicking, he tried to push it open with his body, but try as he might, his efforts yielded him nothing, as the door budged not an inch. Because of its very structure, no light from the merry-go-round room came through.

"C-Calm down… There should be a way out somewhere," he said, trying to think positively. "This room wouldn't be much use if there were no way to leave."

Eventually, he remembered the button and pressed it, after which the door swung right open once more. Wanting to see how long it would take for it to shut, he stood there waiting. Once the door shut once more, he had reckoned the time to be about a minute long.

Now aware of how he could leave, Masashi kept his way through the odd passageway. He turned left and headed forwards before finding himself at a much greater room. The walls were still lined with bookshelves, but there was also a table placed right in the middle. The passageway from which he had come continued at the room's other end, and the lighting came from lamps hung on the columns.

Though there had been books surrounding him ever since he had first come here, only now did he even think of checking what kinds of books that this room stowed. From a brief look, the shelves had sundry books such as kids' comics and medical textbooks. One book in particular caught his eye because of its title.

_Let's see…_ Masashi thought. _Recent Developments of the Use of Augmented and Virtual Reality Technologies for Clinical Purposes…_

It was the part about "augmented and virtual reality technologies" that interested him the most. He had always wondered how far technology would go, seeing that many attractions had begun to feature augmented reality. Come to think of it, he could faintly remember hearing about in the news that there was a certain research lab dedicated to studying the book's topic—

"Now why are you here, you little wretch?"

Masashi froze, knowing all too well whose voice it was. He turned around, and sure enough, it was Atsushi Morokuzu, the archaeologist and the deputy. Masashi had been so focused on the book that he must not have heard the revolving door opening.

"It seems that you have broken the curfew," Atsushi said, none too pleased. "I expected not that you were such a man, but alack, mine expectations were off the mark."

"Well… haven't you done the same thing?" Masashi asked. "I mean, you were out last night, weren't you?"

Atsushi let out a small scoff. "I know not how you came to know of that, but I see that an explanation from me is nevertheless needed. Very well. Yesternight, I merely looked about the premises to see whether there was anything of interest. Futaba had done her own investigation, but I was not satisfied with her results. It was highly likely that she had overlooked something. Of course, I sought leave to investigate. I cannot very well do an unauthorized deed."

He then glanced at the nearby books and touched the spines one by one. "How fascinated I was when I first discovered what awaited me here! To be beset by so much knowledge about what mankind has uncovered… Why, words cannot express my joy! Amid the dreariness that is this ship, this was practically a hallowed sanctuary! 'Twas rather unfortunate, however, that when I reported this to Futaba, she bade me keep this a secret."

"Wait, she did?" Masashi said.

"Yea, I lie not. I had examined the room briefly, for I had waxed tired, whence she told me to come back hither and investigate it fully. After all, what secrets and dangers may be hidden here?" the archaeologist answered. "Until we finish our search, the room is off-limits to you."

Things were only getting more and more confusing. Masashi had thought that Atsushi had been keeping this a secret from the rest of them, but never had he suspected Futaba of knowing about this as well.

"It's odd…" Masashi murmured. "I thought Futaba to be truthful."

Atsushi laughed a short but mocking laugh. "Truthful? Masashi, none of us are without secrets. Rest assured, Futaba Inoshishi puts up a front that we are to gaze at without question, and so she is not loath to hide a few things from you." He shook his head with great disapproval as he wandered around the room. "Such a shame it is. Her kin is of high station, and yet she chose to dedicate her intelligence and opportunities to a figure skating career of all things. Think of all the good that she could have done the world if she had chosen the physicist's path."

It was then that Masashi could see what Atsushi's true feelings toward the rest of the group were.

Though he had sworn to keep the rest of the group safe, that did not mean that he would become kinder and more approachable. On the contrary, he became bolder in his belief that those whose talents he deemed worthless were lesser, even if such a person included his better. It certainly explained how willing he was to mete out such harsh punishment upon Arashi and Red Mask, however effective it might be.

And yet, Masashi was unsure as to how he ought to think of Atsushi. On one hand, it was undoubtedly disappointing for him to think of his peers like that, and he seemed so set in his thinking that Masashi was at a loss as to how he could convince him to think otherwise. But on the other hand, judging by his deeds, Masashi could not deny that Atsushi had done the group some good by disciplining the rowdier members and thus maintaining normality. And though he was harsh and condescending, it was not as if he were to ever use violence against him or the others. He was not that kind of man, for if he were, he would be rightly called out as a brute, and for the man, brutishness did not befit an intellectual.

Just as Masashi was about to say more, however, he heard the revolving door. He at first thought that the door had simply shut, but when he heard footsteps, he turned around at once.

"Ah, you're here as well, Masashi?" It was Mari, who looked only a bit surprised to find him here. "That's rather odd… I thought it'd only be us two."

"Deem him to be an unbidden visitor, then," Atsushi answered, looking slightly more delighted at her presence.

"Wait… what are you doing here?!" Masashi said, growing more and more confused.

"Have you not listened to me?" Atsushi said. "Futaba bade me investigate this room fully. But 'twould be rather tiresome if I were to work alone, so I asked Mari to help me."

Mari looked at the bookshelves with awe. "So many books… I wonder whether there are any about paleontology."

"Oh? Have you an interest in the field?" Atsushi asked, sounding truly surprised.

"To some extent," she answered, but for some reason, even though she seemed keen to talk more about the topic, Masashi could sense a bit of distance in her voice. "One time, I got into doing some informal research on dinosaurs."

Atsushi raised a brow. "Whence came the want to do such research?"

Mari stayed silent, but it was clear that she was hesitating. "I… wanted to occupy myself a bit. There was something going else in my life, and it was a nice change of pace."

Masashi wondered what exactly had been going on during then. Given the lack of fondness in her expression, he guessed that it had not exactly been a happy time for her.

"I see…" Atsushi mumbled, sounding more and more shocked. "Mari, you are a rather intelligent maiden. Once this whole kidnapping affair be over, I shall beseech my colleagues to let you participate in a paleontological dig. I am sure that you would find it to be a lovely experience."

"You really would do that?" Mari said, her voiced interest slight.

"Of course," Atsushi answered keenly. "Your expertise, however small it be, will be appreciated."

Mari showed a slight smile. "Well, if I ever get the invitation, I'll be sure to thank you."

Atsushi smiled back as well, and it was one of the few times that he looked truly blissful. He generally carried a great scowl, doubtless thinking about what he must undergo to manage his subjects, as it were. And given that the only other person he enjoyed being around was Mari, Masashi could only wonder with dread how the archaeologist might react if anything unfortunate should befall her.

In any case, Masashi could see that he had no more business to do here. He had found the answer to his question as well as a few other things about Atsushi, and however much he wanted to look more at the books here, Atsushi and Mari would be busy investigating this room, so it was time that he were gone.

"May I leave now?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, certainly. I will let your transgression go this time," Atsushi answered.

"Well, thank you very much—"

"Let me finish!" Atsushi ordered. "I will let you go, but you must keep the existence of this room hidden for now. Until we clear the room of any potential dangers, 'tis best that no one else know about this."

"Uh, all right."

"And!" he added. "You must answer me one question."

Masashi had no idea as to where he was going with this, but if it was only a question, surely it would not be anything too bad.

"Since I found you here, I have wondered wherefore you came," Atsushi began. "Tell me, what made you look for this room?"

In other words, he wanted to know his motivation for breaking curfew. It was understandable why Atsushi would ask about this.

"Well, I heard that you were out last night, and I wanted to see for myself what you were up to," Masashi answered.

"I see… You were simply curious about my deeds," Atsushi said, nodding along. "But let me ask you: why were you curious?"

"Why I was curious? Well, I…"

Masashi stopped. Though it was a simple question, he was utterly befuddled as to how he could answer it. He had never thought about it, after all. And yet, not only did he subconsciously know the answer, but he also accepted it as good. Why else would he be here?

Atsushi chuckled. "You are quite puzzled, I see. But fret not, for there is an answer to the question."

"There is?"

"Of course. 'Tis one that minds throughout the ages have known all along," Atsushi answered. "The reason for your curiosity is the same reason why all beings are curious. Forsooth, we are meant to seek knowledge in the same way that we seek food. In other words, curiosity is intellectual hunger."

"That's quite a metaphor," Mari remarked.

"Now, all food is not equal, and neither is all knowledge," Atsushi continued. "For the lesser creatures on this earth, knowledge pertains to survival and a few trivial things. But men are different. Men have been gifted with the capacity of higher knowledge. Men can think about their very nature and purpose and can ascertain how the world exactly works. It is why men who seek trivial knowledge are barely any better than the lesser animals."

"And how does it relate to me?" Masashi asked. Though he understood the man's line of thought, it certainly sounded more like a screed about his views on mankind.

"Simply put, you were intellectually hungry," Atsushi said. "Your want to find out what I had done was deemed great enough to break the curfew. Forsooth, mine expectations for you were off the mark, for I thought you to be a slacker. Next time, to sate your hunger, do something that does not involve breaking the rules, or woe betide you!"

"Uh, thanks for the advice," Masashi said. On one hand, he appreciated that he had been let off the hook this time, but on the other hand, he was not so sure that what Atsushi said was right. Obviously, he valued doing well in his academics, but it was not something that he mainly focused on. And sure, he liked learning new things, but he did not often go out his way to learn more about the sciences, which kind of knowledge was what Atsushi deemed the most important. In the end, Masashi did not think himself "intellectually hungry".

But if that label did not fit him, then whence came his curiosity?

* * *

**Well, here it is. Things get slightly more interesting, now that Masashi has found the hidden room and has learned a bit more about the leadership. The motive still hasn't been revealed yet, but it ****will be shown in full detail in the next chapter. And yes, as you can see, I'll be doing Free Time Events for the characters as well.**

**Anyway, here's a question for you. Which characters (Masashi excluded) would you like to see as survivors (not necessarily the ones that you think are the likeliest to survive)? Your answer can be based on which ones are your favorites or which ones you would like to see develop.**


	8. The Woodland King Comes (4)

The next morning, Masashi woke up, still wondering about what he had learned last night. Though it was a relief to know that Atsushi had not been up to anything shady, it still troubled him a bit to see that he had not become any friendlier, unlike what Masashi had been hoping for. And more importantly, there was a secret room connected to the merry-go-round room. It certainly had a strange air about it; it did not match the woodland setting at all, looking more like a private room in a great mansion. Masashi had guessed that it was simply a room for employees to relax in or to hide in for some of the attractions, and it would explain why the amusement park management had not even bothered to integrate the library into the setting.

_Maybe I should talk about this with Mari later..._ A part of him wondered whether she and Atsushi had found anything interesting from their investigation, and Mari seemed more willing to tell him. And as far as he could tell, there was no rule that stated that she could not talk about it, so it would be no breach of protocol, and all would still be right.

As Masashi got ready to join the others for breakfast, however, he spotted something peculiar by the corner of his eye. There, lying on his desk, was a pink tablet. Right away, Masashi picked it up. Since it had not been there last night, it must have been Monokuma that had put it there. But if that was true, then the tablet betokened nothing good.

_Still, I wonder what this is_, Masashi thought as he looked at it, which looked much like a Monopad. When he tapped the screen, however, it turned on, showing two silhouettes of him. In the middle was displayed, in a rather gaudy font, "Masashi Kousaki's Motive Video".

"It's the moment we've all been waiting for! The motive video!" Monokuma's voice rang out from the video. "Who's the person most important in your life? Let's find out!"

The screen then changed, now showing a certain girl with short black hair and a bright smile. On her head was a white headdress, and her white apron was worn over her black dress that came with white lacing. She was standing alone in a room that had plain beige wallpaper and looked rather clean.

"Keiko?!" Masashi exclaimed, confusion rushing through his mind, his heart beating fast. Why in the world was his little sister in this video?

"Masashi Kousaki, the Ultimate Lucky Student!" Monokuma continued. "Rather bland and uninteresting upon first glance, this high school boy can stand out only with his title. But the same can't be said for Keiko Kousaki, his little sister and the Ultimate Maid! We've managed to get a video with her, so let's hear her sweet exquisite voice now!"

"Oh, hey, Masashi!" Keiko said. Masashi was relieved to hear that she had the same blithesome and light-hearted voice as she always did. "I hope that things are going well back at home. It's been pretty tiring so far at the place I'm working at, but it's no problem for me! I'll be sure to send you some of my earnings soon!"

But no sooner had Masashi felt glad to see her doing well than the screen changed. To his utter bemusement and horror, Keiko was sitting on the floor and looked quite unkempt, her clothes tattered. She seemed to be in a different room; the wall was a dull gray color, and the surroundings were extremely dirty. And worst of all, her kind smile was no longer there, weariness and misery all over her face.

"Wh-What the?!" Masashi blurted out, seeing that she seemed to be in a jail cell of some kind. Whatever her place of imprisonment might be, his concern and confusion grew ever so quickly.

"Oh, no!" Monokuma said all too blithely. "It seems that Keiko's days of employment have come to an end! And it's all due to an unfortunate incident! What is that incident, you may ask? Well, you'll find out once you leave this place! Puhuhuhuhu!"

The video ended.

"N-No…!" Masashi said, trying to deny what he had just seen. This must be some kind of cruel trick of Monokuma's. "There's no way this is true… _There's no way in hell this is true!_"

He would have thrown the tablet at the wall if he had not suddenly remembered that the others might have gotten something like this as well. He must go see them right away. Leaving the tablet behind, Masashi rushed out of the room and found Murphy and Haruyuki nearby.

"Ah, you two!" Masashi said. "Have you gotten—"

"The motive videos? I'm afraid we have," Murphy said, his expression grim under his straw hat. "The whole thing stinks to high heaven, that's for sure."

"Futaba and Atsushi have made us tell the rest of you to go to the dining room at once," Haruyuki said. Strangely enough, he looked not at all befuddled by what he had found in his room. "Once everyone is gathered, we shall then talk about this."

With no complaints, Masashi headed to the dining room at once. There, Futaba, Atsushi, and Mari stood by one table, the phenologist looking a bit tired, perhaps from waking up earlier than she usually did. The others who were here were Faye, Sister Hikari, Haruka, and Tanjiro, all of whom looked quite bothered and dispirited. There was no need to ask whence their unease came.

"I-I can't believe it…" Faye murmured. "H-How…?"

"Th-This is a joke, right?" Haruka said. "I mean, speaking as a clown, I can't but see this as one…"

"If it is a joke, it's a rather mean-spirited one," Tanjiro remarked.

Soon, all the others came. Most of them looked rattled and confused, and only Haruyuki, Abraham, and Maiha seemed to have managed to keep it together. Once everyone settled down, Futaba stepped forwards. She herself kept her usual stiff demeanor, but something about it looked a bit forced. It seemed that even she had been shocked by her video's contents.

"Now that we are all here," she began, "I would like to confirm something. Has each and every one of you gotten a so-called motive video?"

One by one, the students affirmed so.

"But what is the meaning of this?" Murphy asked. "What's Monokuma trying to pull here?"

As if bidden to come, Monokuma popped up right in their midst and looked rather gleeful at this sudden development.

"Why, what's confusing about it, buddy?" Monokuma said. Though their captain, he certainly seemed rather uncaring about his passengers' concern.

"You know what I mean," Murphy replied. "Why have you given us these videos?"

"What, haven't you ever heard of a gift?" the captain said. "Here at Brightmere Mirthyard, we appreciate the loyalty that our customers show to our brand, so we'd like to give something back!"

"Say that to me again, but without the bullshit on top of it," Abraham said, snarling.

Monokuma scoffed. "Well, so much for customer satisfaction! All right, I'll tell. See, I've been waiting for the last two days, and let me tell you, I'm pretty surprised!"

"Surprised at what?" Tanjiro said.

"Surprised that none of you have been killed yet!" Monokuma exclaimed, paws raised. "I mean, I was once stuck in an amusement park for a day, and the appeal got old really quickly. There are only so many ways I can enjoy riding the same roller coaster again and again!"

"Is that all you do at an amusement park? Ride on roller coasters?" Maiha said condescendingly. "Such simplistic taste you have."

"That aside, didn't you hear us the first time?" Masashi said. "None of us will ever seriously think about killing!"

"Ah, that's true… I never _seriously_ think about it. I'm the kind of bear that likes to think about it _relaxedly_…" Monokuma said wistfully. "Anyway, since none of you have had any plans for that, I've decided that you need something to spur you!"

"Then in other words, the 'motive' in these motive videos…" Futaba said.

"Yep! If you want to know what's happened to your family or friends," Monokuma finished for her, "you'll have to kill and get through the class trial without getting caught!"

The class gasped. Though a few might have already suspected so, it was still a shock to see that Monokuma was now actively working to get them to fall into his paws.

Kumi held what appeared to be a teddy bear dressed like a knight, the storyteller's face full of anxiety. "Th-This must be a lie! The videos must have been conjured by the evil warlock to trick us all!"

"Nope, it's reality! The people in the videos have been… Whoops, I almost gave it away!" Monokuma said.

Though the videos had been bad enough, hearing Monokuma confirm that the contents were not a lie only deepened the students' horror. If it was not a lie, then it meant that Monokuma had somehow gotten his hands on Keiko. It took Masashi great restraint not to grab the bear by his white suit's collar and demand that he tell him everything.

"And there's no telling what may happen to them if you don't act soon!" Monokuma continued, a paw set on his peaked cap.

"What do you mean, Captain Monokuma?" Haruyuki asked.

"Sorry, but I'll say no more! Loose lips sink ships, and I certainly don't want to sink this one," Monokuma replied cheekingly. "After all, I'm on it, and I don't want to get my outfit wet!"

"You… You bastard!" Arashi yelled. "_How dare you do this?!_"

However many times the others might chide him, it seemed that there was no controlling Arashi's hot temper, as he lunged toward Monokuma straight away. Fortunately, Murphy grabbed him by the arm, holding him back.

"Hold it right there! Don't you remember what happened last time?" Murphy said.

"B-But—"

Murphy did not loosen his grip on him. "I don't like this any bit, believe you me, but you mustn't lay a hand on the bear unless you have a death wish."

"Hey, that's not true!" Monokuma said, raising his paws in protest. "Being captain's a pretty stressful job, so I certainly won't punish you for touching me if you're willing to become my masseur."

"Ew, no!" Sayua said, giving him the evil eye.

"Yeah, I think it's pretty clear none of us want to touch you any time soon," Sorao remarked, hands rested behind his head. In any case, Arashi seemed to see the recklessness in hitting the captain, so he resisted no more.

Monokuma scoffed, as if truly hurt by Sorao's words. "I don't appreciate your lack of taste, but that's a problem for another day! Anyway, I've done my job, so I'm gonna get myself a cocktail!"

Tanjiro frowned. "You're just going to leave us like this?"

"Oh? Are you sad that you can't have a cocktail?" Monokuma said. "Sorry to break it to you, but cocktails are a privilege that the captain has! Sucks to be you, doesn't it?"

"Wh-Who cares about that?!" Hikari said, looking ghastlier than usual.

"Hmph! Once again, there's the problem of lack of taste among you!" Monokuma said. "Well, then, goodbye until the first body pops up! Or, you know, until you need me to unclog your toilets. You should be grateful that I'll do you that, at least."

Once Monokuma left, the students stayed silent for a while. It was like when they had heard from Monokuma that they were now in a killing game, and at the time, Masashi had not thought that he would have any more surprises from the bear. But he was dreadfully wrong, and all of a sudden, the chance that the killing game might truly go on had reared its ugly head.

"So what's the plan now?"

It was Sorao, who was facing Futaba and the leader's other two members. The others faced them as well, seeking the lady's guidance.

"Well…" Futaba said, apparently having a bit of trouble. "Hmm… Well… I suggest…"

"Suggest what?" Sister Hikari asked.

"I suggest… that we forget all about it," Futaba answered. "The videos are meant to spur us into killing, yes? Then… we obviously should not think about it at all, and we must do nothing. Sooner or later, we'll forget about it, and with our inaction, we'll have avoided Monokuma's trap."

"I have an objection."

It was none other than Maiha Hanazawa, who stared coldly at the lady.

"What objection could you possibly have?" Futaba said, looking somewhat surprised. "All we must do is forget about it."

"Hmm… Forget about it, you say," Sorao said. "Well, to a certain point, I get it. If we think about the videos, we'll obviously be likelier to think about killing someone."

Many of the others murmured in agreement with Futaba's advice. On one hand, Masashi could hardly brook the thought that Keiko was in great danger, and he needed to know what had happened to her, fearing lest her situation grow even worse. But on the other hand, Futaba's bidding made sense, since the only way to beat Monokuma at his own game was not to play at all, and killing would only continue the killing game.

But as if having foreseen the positive response, Maiha scoffed, a certain keenness in her eyes. "But that's no solution at all! You tell us to forget about it, but have you forgotten what Monokuma said as well about the hostages?"

"I-I believe he hinted that if we should not kill anyone soon, something bad might befall the hostages," Tanjiro said.

"Wait, you don't mean…" Faye said.

Maiha stood confident, her arms akimbo. "It's exactly what you think it means! Those facts in mind, do you truly think that we can simply forget about this and expect everything to be all right?! For all we know, the hostages may soon undergo such things as forced labor… torture… _death!_ Can you truly look me in the eye and say that you are willing to take that risk and gamble with their lives?!"

Futaba flinched, staying silent as she struggled to come up with a response. However arrogant and prideful Maiha might be, however bombastic her speech might be, there was no denying the fact that she had a point here. Something might soon befall Keiko, and the sooner he got out of this godforsaken ship, the sooner he could find her and get her to safety.

"Th-That's right!" Haruka said, her voice and expression fearful. "W-We can't just do nothing while our loved ones are in danger!"

"Yeah, I can't agree to that!" Faye added. "There has to be a more effective, successful, and worthwhile solution to this!"

"You've got to think of something else!" Sayua said, her and the others' attention now directed at the speechless leader. "There's no way in hell I'll sit here like a lame duck and do nothing!"

"Y-Yeah!" Arashi said, angrily shaking his fist. "W-We've gotta stop Monokuma from doing whatever's going on in his twisted mind!"

One by one, as if overcome by the strength and might in her words, the students that had been in agreement with Futaba's advice now lost certainty in the effectiveness of what their lady had bidden them do. It was as if a virus had been unleashed upon the class and made them lose all control of their suppressed emotions. Besides Maiha, the only ones who Masashi could see had not reacted with panic were Atsushi, Mari, and Haruyuki. The last seemed to be looking at the situation as if he were a faraway seer, whereas the first two seemed to be whispering to each other about something.

"Everyone, please! You must settle down!" Futaba besought. "We mustn't fall for the temptations that Monokuma has laid us out. If we act maturely and think rationally, we can see that what I have suggested is the wisest course of action."

"B-But, Lady Futaba, a-are you sure about that?" Kumi asked, clutching his teddy bear even more tightly. "S-Surely there must be something you can do to fight off the evil warlock's spell!"

More and more grew the cries to beseech her to reconsider her bidding and think of a better plan. However many times she assured that she was right about her plan, there was no stopping the flood of fears that had been evoked in the students. The more closely Masashi looked, the more he could see Futaba becoming less and less able to keep her prim and proper disposition. The lady eyed each member of her audience, not stopping at one for even a few seconds, her lips trembling, her hands shaking a little. It was as if she were begging for someone else to say something instead, her eyes meant to beckon the target to speak in her stead. But now, there was no chance that anyone in the audience would speak for her.

"You know," Sayua said, "I bet you can go ahead and tell us to do nothing since you're not telling us the truth."

"Excuse me?" Futaba said, eyes widened.

"Don't you know? Sitting ducks are the easiest to kill," Sayua answered. "If you have us stay put and do nothing, it'll make it easier for you to take one of us down! I bet that's what you're truly up to!"

Maiha raised a finger. "Why, that's a rather good point! I don't mean to mar the good woman's name, but it's rather worrisome how vulnerable we shall be if we go with her idea, is it not?"

"N-Now that you mention it…" Hikari said. "Sh-She has been awfully insistent about it."

A few others too murmured about the very possibility that her whole idea was nothing more than a plot to weaken them. At this point, Masashi thought that it would take the lady extremely well done persuasion to get them back on her side, lest her leadership be questioned as well. After all, it was the others that had agreed to let Futaba be their leader.

"_All of you, be quiet at once!_"

The shriek that rang throughout the room silenced all the students, for it had come from none other than their leader, who looked, to Masashi's sheer surprise, utterly wrathful. Maiha covered her mouth with her right hand; Atsushi and Mari stopped their whispering; and Haruyuki eyed the lady with surprise.

"You have no right to slander me like that!" Futaba yelled, all grace and composure gone in her voice. "I've been doing nothing but tell you the wisest thing to do, and yet you accuse me of working against you! _How utterly, utterly foolish!_"

"Eek!" Kumi squealed, hiding his face behind his teddy bear.

"Sh-She's gone berserk!" Red Mask said, gaping.

"Whoa, I certainly didn't see that coming," Sorao said, eyes widened.

The others stared wide-eyed at her as well. Up to this point, Futaba had acted as this stiff and fussy girl, no doubt because of her wealthy upbringing, and for the most part, her decisions had been sensible enough. But now that there was a motive, confusion had been sown in the class. Now was the time when she was needed the most, but she must not have been ready to handle all the pressure and expectations thrust upon her.

_Sh-She sounds much more like a brat now. Kind of like Arashi, actually..._ Masashi had no idea as to what he ought to say, but it was clear that all her gracefulness had been nothing but a facade.

"You blather on and on about how I ought to change my approach, but I'm the only one that's actually come up with something, so until you suggest something better, I suggest that you keep your mouths shut!" Futaba said, crossing her arms, the crowd growing more bemused at her brattiness.

"B-But don't you think that we should at least talk about other options together?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Other options? What's the point of discussing it when there's nothing else we can do?" She turned to her deputy and his helper. "And don't you have anything to back me up with?!"

"Forsooth, we do." Atsushi stepped forwards, looking much less perturbed by Futaba's change in disposition. "Mari and I are come up with an idea that helps lessen our ordeal."

The archaeologist then whispered something in Futaba's ear, after which she grew surprised. Though she questioned him at one point, after more whispering, she nodded along, apparently approving of the idea. Futaba took in a breath of air and now looked a tad calmer. "All of you, go to your rooms and come back with the motive videos."

"But why?" Tanjiro asked.

Futaba scoffed, her fist clenched. "I'll explain once you bring them here! Now do it, if you know what's good for you!"

This time, no one, not even Arashi and Maiha, argued with her. The students were all curious about whatever idea Atsushi had put into her head. Once they came back with their videos, Futaba bade them put them on the table before her.

"Uh, could you now tell us what this is all about?" Sorao asked. "I mean, I don't see what having all the videos here will do us any good."

"Oh, it'll do you a lot of good, surely!" Futaba said. "Watch!"

Futaba grabbed one of the tablets and raised it up high, as if beckoning the students to gaze at it. It looked like any other tablet, and without turning it on, one could not tell whose it belonged to. Then, with all her might, she slammed it down onto the floor, the impact making a horrible and loathsome noise.

"Wh-What the?!" Masashi exclaimed. "What are you doing?!"

"What does it look like to you? We are to destroy every last one of these videos!" Futaba answered. "If I were to leave you be with them, you would simply watch them again and feel even more tempted to kill!"

"Would that we had destroyed them before we had watched them," Atsushi said. "Then the whole ordeal would have been avoided. But we can still do something about it. Let us get to it."

"Ah, all right," Mari said plainly.

A few seconds later, Atsushi and Mari grabbed two of the tablets and smashed them onto the floor as well.

"Hmph! This one is still working!" Futaba said, having touched the tablet that she had just smashed. "It'll take a few more attempts to destroy this, I see!"

Just as she was about to fling it onto the floor again, however, Arashi rushed toward her, Murphy unable to restrain him. He snatched the tablet from her and turned it on.

"This one's not mine!" Arashi then tossed the tablet in a random direction, and if it had been a few inches nearer to the left, it would have hit Haruyuki. The pyrotechnician turned toward the deputy and his assistant, who were standing by the table with all the tablets. "Then one of them's gotta be mine!"

Arashi ran toward the table, Futaba bidding that the two stop him at once. When Atsushi and Mari tried to grab him, to everyone's surprise, he leapt at them instead and crashed into the table, spilling all the table's contents.

"You stupid little wretch!" Atsushi exclaimed before he bade Murphy and Sorao restrain him. "Be not reckless! Do you not reck of your wellbeing when you resort to that measure? You shall be punished for this!"

"My video!" Arashi exclaimed, but it was no use. As the others silently watched, Futaba, Atsushi, and Mari went ahead and smashed the tablets one by one. By the time they were done, the floor had become covered with the remains of eighteen pink tablets, and the other students had come to show a mix of shock and disillusion.

Futaba cleared her hands, her wrath gone. "Well, now, the pesky temptations have been taken care of!"

"Taken care of? Hah!" Abraham said scornfully. "You may have smashed up the fucking videos, but there's still the problem of the damn hostages."

"Well, as I said beforehand, there is nothing else we can do," Futaba said, regaining her composure. "All we can do is forget about the videos' contents and wait."

"Wait? How does that—"

"I am not done yet, mind you!" Futaba cleared her throat. "It was quite silly for me to forget, but as Atsushi has kindly reminded me, we must wait, but we do not need to wait too long. Remember that I am Futaba Inoshishi, one of the children of the CEO of Inoshishi Enterprises. My father has several resources under his beck and call, and his security force and the authorities must be looking into my disappearance as well as yours, I should imagine. And I am sure that your loved ones' kidnapping is being looked into as well. After all, a disappearance of eighteen more people throughout Japan is bound to catch the authorities' attention."

"Ah, so it'll only be a matter of time before they're rescued as well, right?" Sorao said. "I said it last time, but I'll say it again: it's pretty lucky that you were kidnapped along with us."

"In a way, it's a blessing in disguise," Murphy said.

The others looked more and more persuaded that Futaba had the best idea here. Of course, it was no different from what she had suggested only a few minutes ago, but now that she had given them a good enough reason to back her up, her rhetoric was enough to overcome the naysayers in the crowd. Much as he was loath to admit it, however, it was clear that Futaba had had to fall back on Atsushi for support. If this were to happen once more without someone to support her, then things would become much worse, Masashi imagined.

"And one more thing." Futaba then bowed so greatly that the others looked quite shocked by the gesture. "I greatly apologize for my conduct earlier. It was very unbefitting for someone in my position, and I accept that as the leader, I am responsible for any misbehavior and misdeeds within my purview."

It was a short apology, but it was enough for the others to accept it without any gainsaying. And yet, in the end, she might have her way around here, but this incident had undeniably broken her classmates' image of her, and it would take much for her to mend it. At least, Masashi hoped that she was aware of what steps she could take to do so.

"Now, then," Futaba said, "this mess must be dealt with immediately. Monokuma says that he will do the cleaning, but I want this room to be tidied up for dinnertime. I can hardly brook the thought of supping on the floor."

Sorao shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so. But, uh, who'll be assigned cleaning duty?"

"Uh, could I do it?" Masashi asked. "I don't mind working a bit. It'll help me clear my mind, I think."

Futaba looked a bit pleased, no doubt because she found him rather agreeable. "Very well, then. We shall have Masashi rid the dining room of the current mess. In the meantime, you are free to do whatever you want. Of course, you should not think about your videos' contents, but as I obviously cannot stop you from doing so, I can only give you that small but significant piece of advice."

"Well… no harm in trying at this point," Faye said. "Not as if I could do anything else, of course..."

Sorao scratched his head. "Yeah, it may be a bit hard, but I guess that's the best thing to do for now."

"R-Right! With the help of Lady Futaba's family and friends, we'll overcome whatever the evil warlock throws at us!" Kumi said, having regained his usual cheeriness. "Sir Teddybane will swear to that as well!"

"Sir Teddybane?" Tanjiro asked, confused.

"Oh, that's what I call my teddy bear!" Kumi then showed off his teddy bear wearing a knight's armor. "I've had him with me since my seventh birthday! He's always here for me whenever things get rocky!"

Sayua pointed at the teddy bear, her face betokening her dismissiveness. "Hah, you still have a teddy bear at your age? You ought to grow up and let go of the damn thing as well as drop the whole fairy shtick."

"Wh-What? You… You don't think fairies are real?" Kumi replied, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Of course she doesn't. Anyone who's grown up knows that Fantasyland isn't fucking real," Abraham said.

"Now, now, there's no need to put him down for it," Sister Hikari said gently. "I'm sure this is simply his way of coping with the situation. If all the business about fairies keeps his busy, there's no harm in letting him be."

Abraham scoffed, but in the end, he said nothing else. He must have realized that it was futile to try to get Kumi to leave his fantastic world.

Once Futaba dismissed everyone, the students soon went their separate ways. Arashi ended up being escorted to his room by Tanjiro, his designated guard. Meanwhile, Maiha, who looked a bit disappointed, headed for the starboard hallway. There was something that Masashi wanted to ask her, but for now, he must clean up the dining room.

"_The mess won't clean itself up, you know, so you'd better get started!" _Masashi sighed wistfully. _I'm pretty sure that's what Keiko would say if she were here..._

First things first, he ought to take care of the broken tablets. They had been the so-called roots of temptation to kill, wherefore the leadership's three members had agreed to destroy them. But if they had asked him about it, he would have told them that there was no need to do so. Yes, things did not look too good right now, and he could not but agree that letting the others watch the videos again would not make things better. But in the end, he was sure that even with the videos, there was no way that the students would actually try to murder one another; murder was a crime too great to pull off without letting guilt set in later. And even though he was very curious as to how Keiko fared right now, murder was far too dear a price for knowledge.

As he collected the tablets, however, he happened to touch one of them and nearly started once a voice came out from it. The screen was slightly cracked because of the damage that Arashi had caused, but the video was playing. The leadership must have accidentally overlooked this one because of the chaos that Arashi had caused. And yet, it mattered little, since the one that had escaped the leadership's cleansing, as it were, was none other than his.

Masashi wondered whether he ought to laugh, since the very root of his temptation was still here. He could watch the video once more and not only see Keiko's face but also her voice. To be sure, he checked the other tablets to see whether they by some chance were functional. Unfortunately, however, they were all broken. But when he looked at it the other way, he felt all the luckier that it was his that was the only one unbroken. He felt a bit bad that he was deceiving the others, but this was something that he would not let go, and so he hid the tablet in his gray jacket and worked as quickly as he could to finish the cleaning.

After a long while, the dining room looked as it usually did. If Keiko had been here, undoubtedly, she would have done it much more quickly.

* * *

After putting the video in his room, Masashi walked around the woodland kingdom, wanting to see what the others were up to. Though sure that they were still a tad troubled by the motive videos, he hoped that they would soon find a way to handle the situation. Of course, that was much easier said than done; now that Keiko was in trouble, he wondered every now and then how much danger she might be in.

At one point, he passed by the lounge in the third deck and heard voices coming therefrom. He peeked in, and to his surprise, it was Futaba and Sorao.

"Ah, well, once again, I'd like to say that I'm sorry I got caught up in the frenzy," Sorao said, bowing. "Even though I was concerned about the person in my video, the others and I shouldn't have pestered you."

Futaba nodded, unperturbed. "At this point, what is done is done. Still, it is not only I that must learn from the experience."

Sorao chuckled. "Well, that's true. I'll try not to get carried away next time. But, you know, maybe I can help you as well."

Futaba raised her eyes a bit. "Oh? Whatever do you mean?"

"Let me try to put this as lightly as I can… I think that your leadership could be better."

"That is evident enough," Futaba said. "But one could say likewise for many a thing. Unless one actually had a good reason to make that argument, I should be inclined not to pay heed to it."

"A reason, you say? Well… You may want to hear this." Sorao cleared his throat. "I've heard that yesterday, Atsushi had been dealing out punishments to a few others for breaking the rules. For example, Faye ended up having to clean up the servants' quarters as part of punishment for accidentally breaking a plate. He even had her set up a curtain on the window since he said it would make the room look better."

"So I have heard. But how is that relevant to the reason that you claim to have?"

"Well, I think the punishment ought to be less harsh," Sorao said. "And from what I've heard, so do a few others. I mean, no one wants to be subjected to tiresome work or locked in a room the whole day. Maybe you can soften things a bit."

Futaba pondered for a moment. "I see your point. I suppose that I ought to make a rule that limits what kind of punishment may be given."

Sorao smiled. "Sweet! And while you're at it, you had better know that Atsushi isn't exactly the most popular guy aboard. I think it'll be better that you not listen to him all the time. If you always listen to him, your image will no doubt be associated with him, and the others, I'm afraid, won't think that highly of you."

Having stayed silent for the last few minutes, Masashi was amazed to see how helpful Sorao was to Futaba. He had struck him as a rather kind man when they had first met, but it was good that he was also helping the leadership. Whatever her qualifications might be, Futaba was not exactly the most approachable student here and so someone like Sorao might help her with that.

"But when shall I not listen to him?" Futaba asked stiffly.

"Simple. You ought to think about how Atsushi's suggestions affect the class," Sorao answered. "The others understand his suggestion to break the motive videos, but they're not too happy about it. Next time, you need to think twice about what he says and think more about how else you can make the class happier."

Futaba nodded along, seemingly accepting of his criticism. "Hmm… I suppose that that is right. Very well. I shall contemplate the matter."

His suggestion intrigued Masashi as well, since it meant that if she listened to Sorao, Atsushi's influence would be lessened greatly. Given that the rest of the class did not seem to like Atsushi too much, Masashi saw this as a good thing, since the others will doubtless be much happier. Of course, he could only imagine how angry the archaeologist might become upon hearing the news.

"Now, then," Futaba said, "you say that you are a celesta player, yes?"

"Yep, but there's no celesta to play here, so I can't play you a piece."

Futaba shook her head. "Anyone can obviously see that there is no such thing here, and so clearly, that is not what I want. I presume that you have played at concerts before."

"Well, not to brag, but I have won many a musical competition and performed in many a concert," Sorao said, looking a bit prideful. "My many achievements have helped raise my musical profile."

"Then surely you have many tales of your performances to talk about. Entertain me."

"Sure thing!" Sorao said. "One bright and starry night…"

As soon as Sorao began his tale, Masashi saw it as a sign to leave them alone. Interesting as it might be, he was more interested in seeing what the others were doing. When Masashi entered the third deck's playroom, he found Maiha standing there alone. She appeared to be thinking about something, sitting on a log.

_Ah, that reminds me… I want to ask her something._

"Uh, Maiha?" Masashi said as he approached. "What are you doing right now?"

She said nothing as if she had not noticed his presence.

"Maiha?"

Nothing happened. Wanting to make her notice him, Masashi poked her on the arm, which garnered a stern stare from her.

"What do you want?" she asked, already looking tired of his presence, her arms crossed. "Couldn't you see that I was thinking deeply about certain matters?"

"I simply want to ask you something," Masashi said. "It's about what happened earlier. You reminded everyone that Monokuma might do something bad to the hostages."

"Yes, I did," she said, eyeing him warily. "What of it?"

"You… You did it on purpose, didn't you?" Masashi asked, remembering how she had acted during the meeting. "You said all that stuff to make the class angry at Futaba."

Maiha rolled her eyes and shrugged her shoulders. "I have no idea what you're talking about. I was simply pointing out what she had overlooked. Accusing me of being a rabble-rouser is uncalled for, to say the least."

He should have known that she would deny it. After all, her being a rabble-rouser led to unsettling implications about what she might do later.

"Even so, you should have known that you'd make Futaba get anxious with all the pressure from the others," Masashi pointed out. "Because of you, she acted rather unbecomingly for a leader."

"Well, it's _her_ fault, truly," Maiha said dismissively. "If she couldn't handle it, then she shouldn't have become the leader in the first place."

_Oh, so that's what this is all about…_ Masashi sighed. Of course she had a grudge about not having been chosen as the leader. Unlike Futaba, Maiha did not even put up any image of grace and humility, however fancy and elaborate she might look.

"Wait, I don't get it," Masashi said. "Futaba's a rich girl like you. And since you've been calling the rest of us commoners, I'd figure you two would get along."

Maiha let out a scornful laugh. "You think that all rich folk are the same! Truly, you are a commoner. Let it be known that she and I are too unalike."

"Really?"

"Yes. For one, she's needlessly fussy and persnickety, and she sounds too stiff as well," Maiha answered. "And for a leader, she's far too weak and unassertive, having to have Atsushi help her all the time."

Funnily enough, given what Sorao had told her, Masashi would think that to be no longer a problem for Maiha, but he could see that her grievances were deeper than that. After all, even before seeing how Futaba would act as the leader, Maiha had already been a bit upset that she had not been chosen. Masashi suspected that her true desire was to stand above all others. Of course, he did not know how Maiha treated her friends, but he suspected that she at best saw them as equals and never as her betters.

"And even if we were not in this situation, I should still find her quite disagreeable," Maiha said. "I've talked to her about such topics as business, finance, and politics. We disagree too much for me to deem her someone to associate with."

In other words, even if she talked to someone of the same social class, if that person differed too much from Maiha in those matters, friendship was not to be expected. Therefore, there was no chance that Maiha would ever work with Futaba. It was rather small-minded, but given how prideful she was, Masashi was not too surprised at her behavior.

But there was another quality of hers that worried him. However childish she might be, she had managed to put the class into a frenzy over Futaba's solution to the problem involving the motive videos. Clearly, she was far more cunning than he had thought her to be. Of course, he was sure that she would never try to kill, and he had no actual proof that she was truly scheming against the leadership since her excuse for agitating the crowd sounded innocent enough. But henceforth, he must be careful around her. There was no telling what she might do next.

* * *

**And here it is! The long-awaited motive has been shown at last. It's pretty ordinary (and it's the first one in the franchise!), but I think it's pretty effective in pushing certain characters to kill. Masashi's certain that no one will actually kill, and there's this hope that the Inoshishis will rescue them, but of course, as we all know, this is Danganronpa. The characters are bound to be let down, and someone will die soon. Now that you have this chapter's motive, which characters do you think will be the victim and the killer?**


	9. The Woodland King Comes (5)

The next two days went by uneventfully. Though a few of the students still looked bothered by the latest developments, there were no more arguments about what their plan ought to be. Futaba was right that all they could do now was wait for her family or some other rescue force to save them as well as their loved ones.

Of course, that did not mean that nothing had happened. Atsushi's power had been limited greatly; he might no longer force the students he would punish to stay in their rooms all day. Instead, they would simply be given less food as their punishment. For Arashi in particular, Sorao and Murphy were to sit by him and watch him at all times. The given reason for it was that he was too prone to become violent, and so he needed guards at this point. Though angry about it at first, Arashi was easily soothed by Faye's pastries, so the problem took care of itself, so to speak.

Futaba was talking with Sorao more and more. Atsushi was still the deputy, but it was clear that he held less sway over her decisions and had been reduced to a mere enforcer of the rules. Though the archaeologist claimed not to have any problem with this, the evil eye that he gave Sorao at dinnertime said otherwise. He thus spent less time with Futaba and more time talking with Mari about certain subjects. At one point, Masashi saw them relax in the lounge together.

"Forsooth, my team and I have unearthed many relics in our expeditions throughout Japan," Atsushi said. Neither of them had noticed Masashi peeking through the door, for it seemed that their enthusiasm in the topic made them a bit inattentive. "For instance, in the archaeological sites at a prefecture, we helped to unearth hundreds of ancient stoneware and earthenware."

Excited, Mari asked him to continue, after which Atsushi went on and on about pottery, tool production, and carbon dating. It was all so bookish and long-winded that by the time Atsushi stopped, Masashi might have easily thought that hours had already passed. Meanwhile, Mari looked not at all tired or confused, which befuddled Masashi even more.

_How in the world can she stand all of that?_ Masashi thought.

Moreover, Sorao was giving Futaba more and more advice about how she ought to present herself to the others so that they might have a good image of her. One piece of advice was to talk more to her subjects, as it were. Before the reveal of the motive, she had mainly been by herself or with Atsushi when it had been part of her schedule. Hence, she had come off as rather detached from the rest of the class. Sorao's advice did her wonders, as the students—except Maiha, of course—spoke better of her.

At one point, when Haruka was practicing her clowning, Futaba and Sorao happened to pass by her, and they watched her for a few seconds.

"Such crude entertainment!" Futaba said, slightly irked. "Does it not make you feel disgraceful to have self-inflicted violence as part of your performances?"

"Now, now, you shouldn't put her down for her talent. That's a pretty quick way of showing that you can't bear with those whose tastes differ from yours," Sorao said softly. "Simply apologize for your remark, say that it's not in your taste, and leave her be."

"Hmph. Very well."

Futaba then did what Sorao had advised her to do, though she still looked a bit disgruntled at the clown.

"Ah, right. I ought to say more," she said. "Haruka, was it? You must practice more if you do not wish to come off as a disappointment to your audience."

Sorao glanced at her, greatly shocked, and Haruka looked unsure as to how she should respond. However well meaning Futaba had been in her advice, there was no doubt that it had come off as a bit demeaning and condescending. It took Sorao to save her from the embarrassment she had inflicted upon herself.

_Still a long way to go…_ Masashi thought.

* * *

Today was another day. It was good that some kind of order had been achieved at last. Of course, ideally, today was also the day when help would come at last and free them from this place. Until then, however, he had only time to kill.

He looked around on the main deck and saw Sorao leaning against the railing of the aperture on the floor. The aperture itself was lined up with the three apertures on the decks below, the fourth deck's garden at the very bottom, so if one were to accidentally fall from the top, the flowers would not be enough to soften one's landing. Fortunately, it appeared that the aperture's railing was strong enough, so there was no risk that he might fall to his untimely death.

Sorao was drinking a can of lemonade, the temperature a bit warm today. "Oh, hey, man. What's up?"

"Nothing much. Are you free right now?"

"Sure am. Futaba doesn't need me right now, so I've got some time to relax," he answered. "What do you want to do?"

"Well, maybe we can chat a bit," Masashi suggested. "To begin with, you're a musician, right? You play the piano thing."

"Celesta. It's like a piano, but they're not the same thing," Sorao corrected relaxedly. "But I guess it's understandable why you'd call it a piano. It's not something you see every day, is it? There are many students who say they want to learn how to play the piano, but not the celesta, after all."

Masashi nodded. "I wanted to learn how to play the violin, but after I tried it out, I kind of got tired of it."

"I'm not surprised, really," Sorao said light-heartedly. "If you ask me, you're not the kind of guy who has musical ambitions."

That was about right. In fact, Masashi did not think himself to be an ambitious person in general. Yes, he cared about his academics and planned to study for the entrance exams since he needed to attend university, but he seldom thought about changing the world as part of his future. There were no brilliant ideas stirring in his mind.

"Say, how did you discover your musical talent?" Masashi asked. "Did you happen to play the celesta one day and realize that you were good at it?"

Sorao chuckled as he flickered with a fringe of his messy red hair. "Kind of. I have to thank my mom for helping me."

"Oh? What's the story behind that?"

"Well, when I was still a child, my mom always wanted to make sure that I should have an upbringing as good as she could afford," he answered. "I guess it's only natural, since I'm her only child. She gave me everything that she could imagine, even if it cost her dearly. Snacks, toys… you name it."

_W-Wow…_ Masashi thought. From how he described it, his mother must have spoiled him quite a bit. He would have never guessed that Sorao had a rather lavish childhood, for lack of a better word. It was a wonder that Sorao did not feel falsely entitled to everything.

"Anyway, one day, my mom made me take piano lessons. She'd read somewhere that a child who knew how to play an instrument would have better chances at life," Sorao said. "I was around five when I had my first lesson. Back then, I wasn't that interested in it, since I was more of an outdoorsy guy, you see."

"So what changed your mind?"

The celesta player drank more of his can of lemonade. "Trying it out, of course. Let me tell you, I was pretty surprised to see how quickly I became good with the piano. With how skilled I became, it's as if I'd been meant to love it."

When he put it that way, Masashi wished that there were a piano here. He could then hear what wonderful tunes the man could play.

"Two years later, when I was seven, I saw that my music teacher had a celestia as well," Sorao continued. "As you can imagine, my teacher was pretty surprised that I wanted to play his celesta. He was so glad to hear that from me that he didn't even charge me extra."

"And that's how you learned the celesta as well, huh…" Masashi said. The more he heard about his musical career's beginning, the more he felt inclined to call him special. Much about it made him look like a star, and if he dealt with the film industry instead, Masashi could easily imagine him to be a high-profile actor instead.

Sorao finished the rest of his lemonade. "Well, there you have it. That's how I found my musical ambitions. Of course, it's nothing too spectacular, but you certainly don't see that every day, do you?"

"No, certainly not," Masashi answered. "You're a one of a kind guy, that's for sure."

Sorao let out a hearty laugh. "Well, it's been swell to talk with you. Hopefully, this whole crazy situation will come to an end. Maybe I can play you guys a few delightful tunes afterwards."

"I'd like that very much," Masashi said. However bad this situation might be, one upside to it was that he had met many talented individuals. Once everything about this were over, they could look back at this crazy part of their lives as a blessing in disguise.

* * *

It was now midday, and Masashi had already grown keen to eat lunch. He headed to the dining room, where Faye sat at a table eating a cookie. She had just finished it when he approached her.

"Hey, Masashi!" Faye said. "Do you want me to make you something?"

"I'd like that very much," Masashi answered. "Cook me whatever's on your mind."

Faye smiled. "I'll be sure not to disappoint you, then! Get ready for a tasty, mouth-watering, and toothsome meal!"

The pastry chef rushed to the kitchen, and for the next few minutes, Masashi could hear sundry sounds coming from the kitchen. After a while, she came back out with a dish of croissants decorated with cream. Seeing them truly made Masashi eat them already, but upon touching one of them, he yelped from the croissant's hotness.

"Serves you right, if you ask me!" Faye said jokingly. "Food is something to take one's time with. There's no need to rush, wouldn't you say?"

"R-Right…"

Masashi waited a few minutes until they cooled off, after which he slowly took one and began eating it. Indeed, it was a delight to the mouth, the butter inside bettering it.

"Amazing!" Masashi said while eating. "You're not called the Ultimate Patissier for nothing, that's for sure!"

Faye giggled. "That is music to my ears! Go on and have more if you so wish!"

"Gladly!"

He was not much of a glutton, but he would not find this kind of food easily after this whole situation were resolved, and so he ought to enjoy this opportunity as much as he could. He grabbed two more croissants and ate them like a greedy child. Meanwhile, Faye grabbed one and ate it slowly, seeming more interested in watching him. Once the whole dish of croissants was gone, Masashi leaned back against his seat, drinking a cup of tea that Faye had brewed as well. Though it was a simple meal, something about the work made it look greater than it truly was. There was an excellence that, if bereft, would make the meal special only in the food's foreign roots.

"I'm glad to see you enjoy it a lot," Faye said as she sipped her tea. "Shall I cook you some more?"

"No, no, this is already enough," Masashi insisted. "It's pretty amazing that you can cook as well as you do. The one who taught you must've been one heck of a craftsman."

Faye chuckled. "Indeed! My mother sent me to the same Frenchman who taught her all that she needed to know."

"Frenchman?" Masashi said. "Then you spent your time in France?"

"Yes, and believe me, even with my French acquaintances, I sometimes felt a bit lonely without my family. Especially without my mother…" Faye sighed wistfully and looked elsewhere for a short while. Eventually, she remembered that he was here and looked back at him. "But I'm sure you're not here to hear me talk about that. Anyway, the tutorship took a long while, but eventually, I managed to acquire enough mastery of the craft. Thanks to my kind old tutor, I at last had the skills to show everyone that I was a skilled, deft, and able cook!"

It was no surprise that she had sounded more and more energetic at the sentence's last part. From what he could tell, she was a woman who felt all the prouder if other folk acknowledged her abilities. And having tasted her food, he had no doubt that she could indeed walk the walk.

"By the way," Masashi said, "I've noticed something… particular about you."

Faye raised her brow. "Oh? Whatever could that be?"

"Well, in your speech, you seem to like using a lot of adjectives," Masashi pointed out. "You generally use three when one would be enough."

"Ah, so you've noticed…" Faye said. "Well… not that it bothers me. I simply like to sprinkle my speech with a lot of words. The more words, the better, don't you think?"

"Well… It certainly makes you sound a bit fancy," Masashi said. "But maybe you can cut it back a little."

"Oh, but I simply can't!" Faye insisted. "The Japanese tongue is full of beautiful words, and we'd be all the worse, poorer, and unhappier if we chose not to use them!"

It seemed that she sought to show off not only in her works but also in her speech. Though not complicated by any means, it nevertheless came off as a bit needless. Of course, Masashi doubted that he could change her mind about how she spoke any time soon, and it was not as if it were that bothersome; at worst, it came off as a bit flowery and gave off the impression that she wished to look impressive before others. Still, there was no mistaking the needlessness in her speech as a token that her skills in cooking were wanting; indeed, there was enough substance in her works to make him overlook this characteristic of hers.

"Well, then," Faye said as she put down her cup of tea, "are you sure you don't want to make you another scrumptious, flavorsome, and delightful treat?"

"Yes, I'd like to save that for later," Masashi said, smiling.

* * *

"Hey, Masashi! Play with me right now!"

Masashi let out a somewhat exasperated sigh, for it was time to soothe Arashi. All the students had quickly learned that if they did nothing about him, he would soon topple any nearby tables and beset them with his endless whining. It was a downright miracle that he had broken none of Monokuma's rules ever since the first day's incident.

"Uh, all right," Masashi said. Someone must tend to him, and he might as well be the one to take on this burdensome task.

Arashi beamed. "All right! Let's do something fun!"

Normally, he would call for Faye, since she could easily soothe him with her pastries. And Haruka was rather helpful as well, since Arashi found her clowning to be greatly amusing. But since they were off doing something else right now, he had to think of another way to gladden him.

_Well, we are in an amusement park…_ Masashi thought. _This is practically made for someone like him._

"Let's go on the merry-go-round," Masashi said, putting on a winning smile. "I hear it's pretty fun."

They headed over to the merry-go-round room, where its main feature stood not too far from the billboard at the wall opposite to the door. The merry-go-round had many wooden horses and carriages to ride on, but Arashi insisted that he ride on a horse only. Masashi thought about sitting with him together in one of the carraiges, but given that Masashi had to stay by the panel to operate it, he could only watch Arashi having fun. Nonetheless, that was no problem for him; his job here was to keep Arashi entertained.

Once Arashi was seated, Masashi pushed the start button, after which the merry-go-round sprang into life, the horses and carriages moving. From the speakers came a chirpy tune whose intensity seemed to align with the merry-go-round's speed.

"_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!_"

Once the merry-go-round's speed rose such that it took very few seconds to make a full revolution, Arashi screamed. Masashi could not tell whether he was happy or angry, but what was certain was that he was grabbing onto the horse as if there were no tomorrow.

The music soon finished its crescendo. After a while, the merry-go-round slowed down, as did the music, and soon, both stopped. And yet, when Masashi approached Arashi, to his surprise, he looked no less energetic than before.

"That was fun!" Arashi beamed like a small child. From how he behaved, Masashi must remind himself that he was not a child but a boy around his age.

"It sure seemed so," Masashi said. "Had you ridden one of these before today?"

"Sure have!" Arashi answered. "Grandpa and Grandma took me to amusement parks many times! We would spend nearly the whole day going on the rides!"

It was telling that he had mentioned his grandparents but not his parents. Already, Masashi suspected that something had happened to them, but he stayed silent, sensing that it would only derail the conversation.

"That sounds wonderful," Masashi said. "I bet your grandparents worked hard to take care of you."

"Well, Grandpa sure did!" Arashi said, his fists pumped. "He was the one that made the folk in my hometown his wonderful fireworks!"

"Is that so?" Masashi smiled a wry smile. "Is he the one that taught you, then?"

Arashi nodded keenly. "He took his swell time to make sure that the fireworks should be perfect for festivals! Whenever I could, I would go watch him and ask him questions about how he worked! It's all simple to me now, but back then, there were many things that Grandpa warned me about!"

"Really?"

"Yep! Fireworks aren't mere toys to play around with, and thanks to what Grandpa taught me, I've not had any accidents at all!"

Given his every action so far, Masashi was amazed that he had somehow become a certified pyrotechnician. He would have sworn that he would mess up so greatly that the humiliation would bereave him of any mirth that he had in the craft. But if what he said was true, Arashi was much carefuller than one might think.

"I'm sure your grandfather taught you well," Masashi said. "I'd like to see one of your grandfather's works someday."

Surprisingly, however, Arashi dropped his bright smile and now looked a bit woebegone.

"S-Sorry, but…" he said quietly, which was a tad unsettling. "I-I can't take you to him any time soon. He's…"

He did not even need to ask him why. It was all too clear that something unfortunate had befallen his grandfather.

"Look, I'm sorry for mentioning it." However keen he was to hear more about him, Masashi saw that now was not the right time to talk more about it. "Let's just act as if I had never said that, shall we?"

Arashi said nothing for a short while, but eventually, he nodded. "A-All right…"

If he had ever wished for him to be quiet, this would certainly not be what he had foreseen. Masashi could not believe it, but he now wanted him to act as he usually did.

"Hey, do you want to go on the merry-go-round again?" he asked, smiling. "I bet it's a lot of fun the second time around!"

Arashi brightened up, looking nearer to his usual demeanor. Relieved to see that he was not so gloomy that he would stay like that for the rest of the day, Masashi made himself a mental note to bring up the subject of his grandfather a bit more carefully next time. He had a hunch that his grandfather might have had something to do with Arashi's current tendencies, so to speak.

* * *

It was dinnertime, and Masashi thought that it would be like any other dinnertime. But just as dinner was to be cooked, a certain cackle rang through the room and bereft the chattering students of their voices. Not long after, who should pop up in the students' midst but Monokuma, their one and only captain?

"Whoa!" Sorao exclaimed; Monokuma had appeared right by his table, and if he had been even a bit more careless, he would have fallen off his seat.

"Wh-What are you doing here?" Hikari asked, eyeing him warily.

"Relax, relax, I'm not here to cause you any trouble!" Monokuma replied. "Not that I ever have, anyway! This whole trip, I've been nothing but kind to you!"

Abraham let out a mocking laugh. "Yeah, you sure fucking have! Nothing says kindness like trapping us here like rats!"

"That set aside," Atsushi said, "wherefore are you come?"

"Well, I have an announcement to make, and it's so exciting that I must tell you in person what it is!" Monokuma said, doffing his peaked cap. "Starting tomorrow night, a new feature will be available at the merry-go-round!"

"A new… feature?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Whatever could be added to that?" Futaba asked, bemused.

Monokuma covered his mouth, giggling. "What if I say that it's a different version of the ride that you're all used to?"

Tanjiro too looked puzzled. "How different?"

"Well, for starters, this new ride… features something new and exciting!" Monokuma said, opening his arms. "It's called… _augmented reality!_"

Masashi nearly started upon hearing the word. He could still remember having seen the word in the title of one of the books in the hidden library, and it seemed a bit uncanny that a few days later, he should hear about augmented reality from his kidnapper. Meanwhile, most of the others looked befuddled by Monokuma's news. Had he truly meant to excite them, he would have failed greatly.

"How is augmented reality involved, exactly?" Haruyuki asked.

"Well, the Haunted Woods, the alternative version of the ride, is more on the scary side, you see," Monokuma answered, "so if you ride on it, with the help of specially designed AR headsets, you'll get to witness all kinds of horrors coming at you!"

"H-Horrors?" Kumi said, visibly frightened by the thought. Any interest that he might have had in the ride must be gone.

"Wait, hang on," Maiha said. "You say that the ride will be available tomorrow night. Why not tonight?"

Monokuma donned his hat. "Here's the thing: we can't very well let you ride it without making sure that it's safe. Otherwise, we'll have lawyers swarming us about not having followed the damn safety regulations!"

"Well, yeah. If someone should happen to die from your negligence, the responsibility falls upon you and not on us," Sorao pointed out.

Monokuma let out a tired groan as if the issue were a true thorn on his side. "Anyway… until tomorrow at eleven o'clock at night, the merry-go-round room will be closed off! Anyone who somehow goes there will be punished, so you'd better do something else in the meantime!"

Afterwards, Monokuma left as abruptly as he usually did, most of the class still looking befuddled by what he had just told him. Masashi had no idea as to how he ought to take this news; on one hand, the ride seemed harmless enough, but on the other hand, Monokuma was likely up to something here, since he was clearly not the kind of bear to do something out of sheer kindness.

"Hey, so when do you guys want to try it out?"

The one who asked them was Sorao, who looked awfully keen and excited.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Sayua asked.

"You know, the ride Monokuma mentioned!" he answered. "Don't you want to give it a try?"

"Well… a little, I confess," Sister Hikari said.

Tanjiro nodded. "With how Monokuma described it, I'm kind of interested in what's in store for us."

"Hah! Not a chance in hell I'll go along with it," Abraham answered. "I'd as soon drop dead as ride the damn thing."

"Crudely though he has put it, he has a point here," Atsushi said sternly. "There is no good ground as to why we ought to ride it. Forsooth, I have a suspicion that there is something all too odd about it."

Sorao sighed, looking at the archaeologist a bit condescendingly. "You may think that, but can't you see that Monokuma won't try to hurt us with it? I even pointed it out earlier that he had no reason to do so."

"I agree," Haruyuki said. "It's in his interest to ensure the ride's safety. If we ride it, no harm will befall us."

"Well, when you put it that way…" Sayua said.

A few more students became receptive to the suggestion that they try out the new version of the merry-go-round. Masashi was one such student, since Sorao's reasoning made sense. One of the students who looked unpersuaded, however, was Atsushi, the ever so haughty deputy.

"Such hogwash!" he said, scowling. "Lady Inoshishi, surely you must see that we had better stay far away from the wretched contraption. Monokuma plans to lure us into some kind of trap with it, I trow! Therefore, you must forbid us to ride it so that our safety and wellbeing may be ensured."

"Hmm… I wonder…" Futaba said, looking conflicted.

"Come on, don't listen to that stick in the mud," Sorao besought. "He doesn't have to join us if he doesn't want to. The ride's for us who want to have fun."

The two contenders looked at the lady, each hoping that her decision would agree with his. Eventually, after what felt like a long while, she reached a decision.

"Very well," Futaba said. "I can see that the general attitude toward this is that we ought to try it out. And try it out we shall, when it opens tomorrow. Those who do not wish to participate do not need to join us."

"All right!" Sorao said gleefully. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

A few of the others looked happy as well, whereas Atsushi leered at them and mumbled something under his breath, none too pleased that things had turned out this way. In a way, it had been already obvious which side Futaba would listen to. For the last few days, she had grown closer to Sorao and farther from Atsushi, and so she had become much more receptive to whatever Sorao suggested, whatever the merits of his ideas and suggestions might be. This was simply another reminder that Atsushi had lost much clout as the deputy. Anyway, Masashi had no reason to gainsay her decision, as he too was keen to see what the ride was like.

"W-Well, count me out," Hikari said as gloomily as always. "I-I want nothing to do with it."

"Aw, are you sure?" Sorao asked. "Don't you want to have fun with the rest of us?"

"I-I said I don't want to, and that's final!" she insisted. "I'll just stay in my room."

Abraham nodded approvingly. "Glad to see you still have some fucking sense. I'll be in my room as well."

Sorao shrugged. "If you don't want to join in, then fine by me. It's your loss, after all."

* * *

After the evening meal was over, all the students left the dining room, going their own ways. Masashi walked around a bit, going to no place in particular. After a while, he thought to head back to his room, ready to retire for the night. Along the way, however, he saw that the door to the throne room in the third deck was slightly open. When he peeked inside, he saw a certain threesome standing by the two thrones.

"And so, the prince's long journey came to a happy end, and he and the princess wed at last. And thus, the two lived happily ever after!" It was Kumi, who was reading from his book, and surprisingly, the ones whom he had been reading his story were Atsushi and Mari. "Well, how was it? Do you like my story?"

"I must admit, I was surprised to find myself greatly amused," Atsushi said. "I much enjoyed the part in which the prince overcame the obstacles set by the wicked warlock. The words in the section kindled in me great excitement and interest."

"I also enjoyed it," Mari said. "I think the ending is pretty swell. It's only right that the two reunited at last, especially after all the trials he had to go through."

Kumi chuckled heartily. "Well, I'm glad you two liked it! I came up with it the other day, and I've already started my next story!"

"Is that so?" Atsushi said. "Pray tell, what is it about?"

"Well, I've not decided yet, but I have a few characters in mind!" Kumi answered. "In fact, you too can be a character in my next story!"

"What? I, a character?" Atsushi said, astounded. "I understand not what you mean."

"I don't mean it literally, of course! I mean… uh… I can make a character based on you, Sir Atsushi!" Kumi replied, getting out a pen. "I think you'd make an interesting character, though the readers will likely not find you that likeable."

Atsushi gasped. "Not that likeable… How I resent such a deeming of my character!"

"If it helps, I think you'd make a stern but good-hearted character," Mari remarked. "You'd likely be one of those realists that make sure that the hero doesn't do anything reckless lest he mess up greatly."

"I-Is that so…" Atsushi said, looking truly at a loss of words. It was a bit funny to see him act like this, especially because he usually acted seriously. If only he were like this more, then maybe he would come off as more approachable and relatable.

"By the way," Mari said, "Kumi, you earlier said something that interested me."

"Huh? What is it?" he asked.

"You said, 'you too can be a character in my next story'," Mari pointed out. "Doesn't that mean that he's not the only one that you want to incorporate into your story?"

Come to think of it, Kumi had said that, but Masashi had been much more focused on what kind of character Atsushi would be.

"Oh, yeah, that is true…" Kumi said. "Well, Sir Atsushi's not the only one I want to turn into a character! I've done the same to Sir Sorao and Lady Futaba!"

Atsushi raised his brow. "Oh? What are they in your tale?"

"Well, to begin with, I'm thinking of having the story's setting be a woodland kingdom," Kumi answered. "Being here for a few days has inspired me. That's why Lady Futaba will be the kingdom's queen. Maybe I'll make her an elf or a fairy, but whatever she may be, she's definitely the Woodland Queen! And Sir Sorao will be the court bard that serves her faithfully as her closest confidant!"

Those were quite fitting roles for the two, especially with how the two had grown closer lately, but Masashi wondered what Kumi had in mind for Atsushi and Mari.

"And what about me?" Atsushi asked.

Kumi looked at him silently for a few seconds. "Hmm… since you're the deputy, you'd make a good court chancellor. You're like an old man that's very persnickety about how things run around here!"

Atsushi flinched at his description, whereas Mari giggled a little. Masashi too found it funny and now wondered what kind of role Kumi had for him. He would likely be an everyday subject, but of course, that did not sound cool and awesome, and so he would like to be a warrior that was mighty enough to protect his loved ones.

"Well, it's not all bad, I think," Mari said. "Maybe you're the one to whom the kingdom's affairs are left if something bad should befall the queen."

"Yep, that's right! Even kings and queens have to rest every now and then, but someone still needs to be in charge!" Kumi finished. "And as for you, Lady Mari, maybe your character will be the court healer who knows much more than she lets on about the magical world outside. Yes, she'll be the one that reveals to the hero that under the castle lies a magical crystal that supplies energy to the earth, but there is a great evil that threatens the crystal, and the queen is revealed to be controlled by the evil warlock—"

"That is enough out of you," Atsushi said. "Well, there is one thing I should like to know: whatever has happened to the Woodland King?"

"Um… in my current version, the king was killed a few years ago," Kumi answered. "When the warlock tried to steal the crystal, the king stopped him at the dear cost of his death."

"I see…" Atsushi said. "Well, that certainly interests me. You have quite an imaginative mind, and so it is a bit of a shame that it is not dedicated to a field such as biology or astronomy. I assure you that oftener than not, truth is stranger than fiction."

"Ah, well, I think I'm all right where I am," Kumi said as he put away his book. "And since I'd have to memorize a lot of stuff if I were a scientist, I don't think I have the smarts to be one."

"And yet you can remember the smallest details in your tales!" Atsushi said, shocked. "'Tis confounding that you will not see the betterness in the biologist's path!"

"Well, I think he's still stuck in _that_ phase of his childhood," Mari said. "Certainly, there are people his age that haven't grown up yet, as it were."

Atsushi shook his head, tired. "Then I trow that we need only to wait. Eventually, he will see reason and be keener to listen to me—"

"Ooh, a fairy!"

It was then that Kumi darted to one part of the room, looking hard at the ground and paying no heed to the ones whom he had been speaking with. It was like the first time when Masashi had first met Kumi. Atsushi and Mari stared at him, astounded that his attention had been diverted that easily.

"Well, the passage of time will affect him," Mari remarked, "but it'll be a long while before it does."

"Forsooth, Mari, however long it may take, as time and tide will make the storyteller come to his senses," Atsushi replied, "so too will it play a key role in other matters at hand. An opportunity will appear for the taking sooner or later."

* * *

**Yeah, the killing isn't in this chapter. But it will happen on the next one, so if you have a prediction to make or want to change your current one, now is the time to do it.**

**Anyway, this time, the Free Time Events feature Sorao, Faye, and Arashi. Oh, and Atsushi and Mari get involved with Kumi's story. ****Once again, thank you for the reviews! It's very encouraging to see what you guys think (especially when it's about who the first victim and the first killer will be), and rest assured, I'm excited to continue this story!**


	10. The Woodland King Comes (6)

"Ahem! It is now 10 p.m., and nighttime has come. The merry-go-round room will be opened in an hour, so you've got an hour left until you get to experience thrills and chills!"

That was Monokuma's announcement tonight. It had been a day since the class had been told of the news, and many of the students had shown interest in checking it out, much to Atsushi's chagrain. Of course, Masashi could hardly care about what he said, given that his wariness toward the ride seemed groundless; as Sorao had pointed out, there was no reason for Monokuma to try to hurt them, so everything would be all right.

When Masashi arrived at the door of the merry-go-round room, only Futaba and Sorao were there.

"Oh, hey, man!" Sorao said, raising his hand friendlily. "Excited to go on the ride?"

"Well, I am pretty keen to try it out," Masashi answered.

Futaba let out a small sigh. "Where are the others? Do they not know that they ought to be here now? It may begin in an hour, but it is better that we gather as soon as we can."

"Maybe the others didn't get the announcement," Masashi suggested. Only in the nighttime announcement had Monokuma mentioned the time when the ride would start being available, so it was likely that a few of the others had missed it.

"Well, whatever the reason may be, we need to make sure they're coming," Sorao said. "Hey, Masashi, do you mind reminding the others to come here? Normally, they'd be in their rooms, but since tonight's when we go on the ride, they've been staying at different parts of the ship."

It was a small but nettlesome task to carry out, but someone must do it, and since Sorao had not volunteered to do it, it was Masashi that was expected to do it. Thus, he agreed to find the others, thinking that it would not take too long.

The throne room and the lounge had no one in them, but in the shop, he found Murphy alone.

"Ah, hello. Whatever is the matter?" Murphy asked. He appeared to be standing by the counter and doing nothing in particular.

"Well, I've been told to get you," Masashi said. "You are planning to join us, right?"

"Sorry, but I'm not," the Irishman answered. "I'm about to start cleaning duty."

"Cleaning duty? Wait, has Futaba told you to do so?"

"No, it's Atsushi that's making me do it," he answered. "He told me the room was quite untidy, so he asked me to do it. Since I had nothing better to do, I agreed. Though he told me to do it tomorrow morning, I want to get it over with, so I'm going to burn the midnight oil."

"Ah, I see," Masashi said, impressed at his diligence. He certainly could be counted on if he ever needed his help on something.

He bade Murphy goodbye and headed over to the garden on the same deck. Standing by the aperture in the middle of the garden was Maiha, who appeared to be looking at nothing in particular.

"What do you want?" she asked, already looking hostile. Relations with her had not become better since she revealed her contempt for Futaba a few days ago, so Masashi was not too surprised at her attitude.

"Are you going to join us for the merry-go-round ride?" Masashi asked.

Maiha scoffed, looking pridefully at him. "No. Nothing about it interests me."

"Not even the AR?"

"Not when it's used for cheap frights. And I have more important things to do than to go on a merry-go-round full of tricks and gimmicks."

If that was what Maiha felt, then there was nothing he could do about it, so he left her and headed for the playroom. There, he found Tanjiro, who too seemed to be doing nothing.

"Oh, hey," he said. "Is it time for the ride?"

He must have been focusing on something else if he had felt the need to ask. Masashi told him all that he needed to know.

"Ah, I see…" Tanjiro answered. "Well, I'll be on my way, then."

After Tanjiro left the room, Masashi headed for the second deck and entered the servants' quarters, where he found Sayua. It happened to be the same place where they first met. He asked her whether she would go on the ride.

"Sure, I am! Monokuma said there'd be frights, but he won't be frightening me!" Sayua said. "And besides, the whole AR thing sounds kinda cool."

Once she was gone, Masashi walked to the dining room, where he found Sister Hikari, Faye, Haruyuki, Kumi, and Haruka. Once again, he asked them the same question. Sister Hikari and Faye affirmed that they would be, but Haruyuki declined.

"I'm afraid that I shall not participate," Haruyuki said, holding onto his gray scarf. "I do not enjoy riding on the merry-go-round in general, so there is no need to ask me."

"Well, all right, then…" Masashi said. "Hey, Kumi, are you going?"

But the storyteller shook his head. "Nope! Tonight, I shall go a-hunting for fairies!"

"But isn't it pretty late at night?" Masashi asked.

Kumi, however, looked no less keen. "Ah, but trust me, Sir Masashi, fairies like to come out at different parts of the night! I'm sure that fairies will be gathering around midnight!"

"Yes, midnight, but not now," Masashi pointed out. "Wouldn't it be better for you to just join us?"

Kumi shook his head profusely. "No, no! I-I don't want to deal with monsters! Don't you know that ghouls will try to eat you if they see you? A-And ghosts will place a great frightful curse on you if they capture you!"

It was pretty silly that Kumi had convinced himself to stay out of it for a reason that only he would believe, but with how fearful he seemed, there was nothing that Masashi could do to make him leave Fantasyland.

"And besides," Kumi said, "I can't afford to lose my wits tonight, since the Woodland King will soon come!"

"The... Woodland King?" Masashi said bemusedly, recalling the story that Kumi had told Atsushi and Mari yesterday. He was certain that it was not the same Woodland King that was in his work in progress; most likely, it was simply a case of his reusing titles, as it was not as if "Woodland King" were a particularly unique title.

"Yeah, the ruler of all the woodland fairies! You see, fairies find much mirth whenever we humans are frightened easily, and with tonight's event, I am certain that the Woodland King comes!" Kumi insisted. "And if I capture him, think of all the praise that I'll get for doing such a mighty deed! That's why I have to ready myself as much as I can for the hunt!"

"And what about Arashi?"

Haruka looked about her. "Huh… Where is he, anyway?"

"Um, I think he's gone to the storeroom," Faye said. "He said he'd seen a fairy going there, so…"

"Oh, and you don't need to go looking for Hikari, Abraham, and Red Mask," Sister Hikari said. "I saw them heading to their rooms, so I think they're already asleep."

"Ah, thanks for telling me."

Masashi reckoned how many people were left. The only ones whom he had not asked yet were Atsushi and Mari. Though the latter might agree to it, Masashi could hardly imagine that Atsushi would want to ride the "wretched contraption", which he had called it. Still, he wanted Mari to go with him, so Masashi must go find the two.

Since they had not been on the fourth deck, and the storeroom had no one else but Arashi, the only other place was the main deck. When Masashi arrived there, however, he was hit by a great wind that made his gray jacket flutter. The weather tonight had rather strong winds, which made him thankful that everything would be happening inside. Moreover, he could barely see Atsushi and Mari, both of whom stood by the aperture. From where he stood, he could not hear what they were saying, the strong wind blocking out sound.

The archaeologist scowled upon seeing him approach them. "What do you want? Has Futaba sent you hither?"

"Well… yeah," Masashi answered.

"Tell her not to worry, then," Mari answered. "We'll both be there."

"All right, then—" Masashi stopped. "Wait, you _both_? You're going as well, Atsushi?"

"Of course I am!" Atsushi answered, arms crossed. "I have no need to go, but if I choose not to partake in the activity, she may think badly of me, and I surely will not let the knave have his way with her."

_Oh…_

Masashi had hoped that Atsushi had changed his mind about being wary about the ride, but he should have known that his decision had been made as part of the power struggle that he had with Sorao. The musician might not be aware of it, but Atsushi had been quickly losing favor in Futaba's court, as it were, and he needed to stop him or at least lessen his influence. Fortunately, Sorao was much friendlier and helpfuller than Atsushi, so Masashi was sure that Atsushi's efforts would prove fruitless in the end.

Anyway, that was everyone. Overall, including himself, Masashi reckoned that ten people would be going on the ride tonight. That was a little more than half the class, so he had no problem with the number.

* * *

Once eleven o'clock came, the tensome swarmed into the merry-go-round room. It looked no different from how it had looked beforehand, but a few adjustments must have been made for the implementing of the AR features. Masashi looked at the control panel and saw that it had the same buttons as before: START, FORWARDS, BACKWARDS, OPEN ALL DOORS, LOCK ALL DOORS, and STOP. There was, however, a new button: HAUNTED WOODS.

"Well, don't you want to push that button already?"

To his annoyance, it was none other than Monokuma, who now stood next to the panel.

"What business do you have with us?" Futaba asked. "We are about to start, so if you will please step aside…"

Monokuma feigned anger, his paws raised. "Now hold on! Don't you think you need my help here? After all, who's gonna be the one making the thing start?"

"Making the thing start… Oh, I get it," Sorao said, nodding. "Even if all ten of us get onto the merry-go-round, someone still has to press the button to start it."

"But can't one of just press it and rush over?" Sayua asked, irked, as if the solution were that simple.

"If we want to ride the horses, that may work out," Sorao said, "but the carriages are a different story."

"That's right!" Monokuma added. "During the AR ride, the carriages will have windows to block out the outside, so don't even think about doing any reckless maneuvers! Trust me, one time, some bozo thought of doing it, and it didn't end well for his head."

"Then what the hell are we supposed to do?" Sayua asked. "Don't tell me one of us has to stay by the panel!"

Monokuma chuckled, and already, Masashi knew what he would say.

"Don't be so angry, when Captain Monokuma's on your side!" he said. "For tonight, I'll gladly press the start button for you guys. I don't want to make any of you left out of the fun!"

"Gee, thanks," Masashi said sarcastically. "What would we do without you?"

"More importantly," Atsushi said, "if anything wrong should happen, I expect you to press the button to open all the doors."

Monokuma sighed, which only angered the man even more. "Come on, don't you think you're worrying needlessly about it? We've tested it already, and I assure you, no accidents will happen!"

Atsushi, however, looked no less pleased by this assurance. "Still, if an accident should betide us while we are in the carriages, we need a way to escape, wherefore I ask that you press the button to unlock all the doors in that case."

"I don't know… Opening all the doors while the ride still goes on is pretty dangerous…" Monokuma said with feigned concern. "But if it puts your heart at ease, sure, I'll do it! Just bear in mind that I'll do it only if any machinery goes wrong on its own!"

The promise seemed enough to put Atsushi at ease, as he made no further complaints. And once Monokuma answered Tanjiro's question of how long the ride was—it was fifteen minutes long—the ten students stepped onto the merry-go-round. There were four carriages in total, and on the outside was embedded one of the four card suits, each carriage having its unique suit. Each carriage seemed to be able to hold two people at most.

"Well, this is troublesome," Sorao said. "Two of us will have to be left out of the carriages, then. And from the looks of it, only the carriages have the AR headsets."

"That is no problem at all!" Futaba replied. "Since we plan to ride this more than once, we shall simply take turns riding the carriages. The remaining ones will ride the horses."

Sayua groaned. "And miss out on all the cool stuff? You've got to be kidding me!"

"But what are you going to do about it? It's not as if a carriage could be magicked out of thin air," Sorao said. "If it helps, I'll sit on the horse for the first ride, all right?"

"That's pretty noble of you!" Sister Hikari said, amazed. "I suppose I should follow your example, then."

Futaba nodded approvingly. "Excellent. The rest of us will then find partners to sit with."

In the end, Futaba was to sit with Atsushi (who looked overjoyed at the outcome), Mari with Haruka, and Faye with Sayua, which left only Tanjiro for Masashi. On one hand, it was better than sitting alone, but on the other hand, he would have preferred to sit with Mari or Faye, as the writer had a rather quiet and unremarkable personality.

The twosome headed into the carriage with the diamond suit. The inside looked rather exquisite, what with the red seating and flooring, and since the carriages all had roofs, and the windows would soon appear, the only sources of light would be the lights embedded in the roof. On the seat were two cordless headsets.

"All right, then!" Monokuma said. "Starting in three… two… one… go!"

It was then that the merry-go-round began to move. Masashi and Tanjiro donned the headsets and their seatbelts, and a mellow tune of sundry instruments began to play from the speakers outside. At first, his sight seemed no different from before, aside from being a bit narrower. Not long after, however, the windows soon slid up from the side, and the lights turned off, which left two dim blue lights on the wall opposite to the riders. At this point, Masashi could not but feel a little frightened; sure, none of this would truly hurt him, but the thought of being stuck in a dark place while pestered by unsightly things was still unsettling.

As the merry-go-round sped up, the tune grew louder, and without warning, the whole carriage now teemed with bats that flew hither and thither. After they were gone, sundry other creatures appeared. A skeleton wearing a dark cloak and holding a reaper lunged at him and swung his weapon right toward him, after which his whole sight whitened fully. Then came a man with dark blue skin and stitches all over his face. And there were even ghosts coming from all directions, including from his back. It was all so much that he could reckon the number of times he did not scream. Meanwhile, he could barely make out the screams that came from Tanjiro's direction; the tune's loudness still rose and rose.

Eventually, the tune's crescendo ended, and everything stopped, the instruments now replaced by what sounded like a set of drums, though the tune was just as loud. Afterwards, everything darkened, and amid the darkness was a small firefly.

_What the…?_

No sooner had Masashi thought that than the firefly flew toward him. What caught him by surprise was that it did not simply pass through him; it instead stayed put in his sight, as if it had its eyes on him as its prey. Before long, many sundry bugs flew at him and covered his sight, at which he screamed.

"G-Get them off!" Masashi screamed. "Get them—"

Not only did they stay, however, but the carriage also began to move as well as spin, which made him feel greatly dizzy. Luckily, there were seatbelts, so there was no chance for him to somehow bump into Tanjiro. Nonetheless, his sight, movement, and steadiness were now hindered, the drums beating louder and louder, and it was as if he were losing more and more of his senses as time went by. Thankfully, after a while, the bugs went away, and so did the carriage's spinning, as the merry-go-round moved normally once more, the drums replaced by the sundry instruments from before, the two blue lights back on. This time, the whole merry-go-round moved backwards, and so it was as if he were running as far as he could from the creatures that showed up once again. And yet, even with his new direction, the creatures would still have killed him if they had been truly real, which, in some way, made them less frightening. Still, the flashes and the lightning sounds got him every time; even though he knew it was part of the ride, they had so much presence, as it were, that he could hardly ignore them.

Eventually, after a long struggle with the fantastic creatures, the trek through the haunted woods was over at last. The creatures stopped appearing, and all the lights in the carriage turned back on. Once the carriage came to a stop, the windows slid back down, and the AR headsets showed the riders the instruction to take them off.

"Phew…" Masashi said, tired. He had never imagined that he should ever stumble upon such creatures, having relegated them to the realm of his imagination. But since he had now seen them in the real world, and they had essentially been trying to kill him, he was almost sure that he would see them again in his nightmares.

"I-It's incredible," Tanjiro said, looking not at all at ease. "I-I hadn't known AR was capable of that."

The two left the carriage and met up with the others, most of whom looked astounded as well. Though by no means good, Monokuma had surely gone out of his way to inspire fear in their hearts. Only Sorao and Sister Hikari looked unbothered, since they had sat on the horses outside instead.

"Wow… I sure won't be forgetting this any time soon," Haruka said, smiling as part of her effort to put up a cheerful front, but it was clear to all that she was as unnerved as they were.

"With how you guys describe it, I can't wait to go on it!" Sorao said, excited. Sister Hikari, on the other hand, looked only more nervous.

"I must admit, it was rather impressive," Atsushi said, among the ones less frightened. "It must have taken the makers much work to ensure that their calculations were correct for the wights to appear correctly. Otherwise, the whole experience would have suffered."

"That's the beauty of technology, one might say," Mari added.

"I-Indeed…" Futaba said, looking quite bothered by something. "I… I must applaud them for their work."

"Is something the matter, Lady Inoshishi?" Atsushi asked.

"It… is nothing you should feel concerned about," she answered. "The ride simply reminded me of something."

"Ah, is that so?" Sorao shrugged. "Well, I want to try it out and see what you guys are talking about, so let's get back on."

But Futaba shook her head profusely. "No… I think that after an experience like this, we need a short break."

"Y-Yes… I certainly want to cool down a bit," Faye said.

As a few others agreed with the idea, Sorao looked a bit underwhelmed, but in the end, he shrugged it off. "Well, if that's what you guys say, then I guess I can wait for my turn to have fun."

"Speaking of that, how was it on the outside?" Masashi asked, thinking that he might volunteer for sitting on the horse next time.

"This might surprise you, but it wasn't bad at all," Sorao answered. "Obviously, nothing scary goes on since there's no AR involved, but the background darkens, and so it feels as if one were actually in a haunted wood."

Anyway, the students agreed to have a fifteen minute break before they rode the ride again. Faye, Sister Hikari, Haruka, Futaba, and Sorao headed for the kitchen, and Mari and Atsushi were talking about something.

"'Twas a sorely frightful ride, was it not?" Atsushi asked, arms crossed. "The accursed bear is good for something, I ween."

"Still, you won't let your guard down, will you?" Mari said.

"Of course I will not, my dear Mari," he said. "He is up to something, and if it were up to me, I would have us go to bed at once."

"Well, you'll have to take it up with Futaba," Mari said, none too nettled by his needless wariness.

"Oh, I wot that full well," Atsushi said, showing a shady smile. "Would that the lady were no fast friend of the knave's! Then things would go smoothlier, and I should then be free to deal him his just deserts!"

While the archaeologist waxed poetic about his loathing of Sorao, Masashi waxed bored of his talk and thought to look around the room. Sayua seemed to be thinking about something and looking at the ground, whereas Tanjiro looked rather troubled by something.

"Hey, is something the matter?" Masashi asked him. "You look a bit out of it."

Tanjiro raised his eyes a bit. "Oh… It's nothing, truly. I'm only thinking about the ride. It definitely frightened me, but at some point, I just got used to it and started to, uh, study the visuals."

Masashi thought that to be nothing unusual. Tanjiro did not seem like someone who was open about his emotions, and he seemed more marveled by the technological beauty that the AR gave the ride. After all, AR and VR were a new kind of technology, and Masashi keenly awaited what they would bring to the scene. Maybe in a few years, on his free time, he could spend a few hours walking around in a virtual world, all in the comfort of his home.

"Something like this is what the ancients might have dreamt about, don't you think?" Masashi asked, hoping to continue the conversation with a topic that Tanjiro might like. And indeed, Tanjiro lightened up a bit and looked less uneasy.

"Well, of course. We live in a very blissful age right now," Tanjiro answered. "Back then, even kings did not imagine that folks throughout the world could communicate with each other in very short time. But now, we can do that in a matter of seconds, and no doubt that in a few decades or so, our lives will have conveniences more wonderful than we can imagine."

"Yeah, you have it right," Masashi said, nodding along. He was a bit surprised as well that despite his usual shyness, Tanjiro overall seemed like a happy and optimistic man, as he looked blithesome about what the future held for mankind. It was a kind of mindset that Masashi liked.

* * *

After another round of the Haunted Woods, Masashi had grown a bit tired. He had expected it to be less scary, since he had already seen what would await him, and yet, as he had learned the hard way, the selection of frightful creatures in each round was different; most of them from last time had been there, but there had been a few new ones as well. On one hand, it meant that each ride would bring something new, but on the other hand, he shuddered at the creatures that he had not yet seen.

"W-Well, that was… quite a thing," Sister Hikari said, who had sat with Tanjiro. "I think that that's enough for me."

"Y-Yeah," Faye said, who had ridden with Haruka. "I've had enough frightening, heart-thrilling, and spine-chilling surprises tonight."

"What, so early?" Sayua said, who looked much more excited about it than Masashi would think. "I'd never have thought you were all a bunch of chickens."

"Ch-Chicken?" Haruka said, looking a bit unnerved. "I… I'm no chicken, and what you've just said is rather _fowl_, don't you think?"

"That… wasn't a particularly creative pun," Mari pointed out.

"I-I know! It's just that all the creatures in the ride, well, have bereft me of my creative spirit!" she said.

"Whatever your reason may be, I care little for it," Atsushi said as dismissively as always. "Now, shall we ride this yet again?"

"You are free to do so, but I plan to ride it next time," Futaba said. "I feel a bit in the mood for some food and drink. Faye, would you be so kind as to cook me something?"

"Oh, sure!" Faye said. "I think _beignets_ and tea will do for a tasty, toothsome, and flavorsome midnight snack!"

And so Futaba and Faye left together for the dining room. Meanwhile, Sister Hikari had had enough of the ride, and so she left as well, saying that she would go do something else. Now it was only the seven of them left.

"Um, I think I'll go help Kumi with his hunting," Haruka said. "He told me earlier that my help would be appreciated, so I think I'll join in."

"And as for me... I've got to go to the bathroom," Sorao said. "Sorry, but I'm afraid I'll have to sit out this time."

"Well, we could simply wait for you," Masashi said.

"Nay, we shall not," Atsushi said back at once. "If that is what he insists, then let us fulfill his earnest asking."

The man looked awfully keen to have Sorao leave. Given his opinion of the celesta player, Masashi did not even need to guess what the reason might be. But since this was what Sorao wanted as well, Masashi felt no need to gainsay him.

"Uh, I guess I should leave as well," Tanjiro said. "I think I've had enough—"

"Must you leave so early in the night?" Surprisingly enough, it was Atsushi yet again. "I bid that you stay and enjoy the ride with us."

"Y-You do?" Tanjiro said, he and a few others looking a bit puzzled.

"Forsooth. I want to ask you something later, and it requires that you not leave," he answered. "Do you understand?"

Confused as he was about Atsushi's keenness to have him stay, Tanjiro nonetheless made no protest and nodded. Since none of the others appeared wanting to leave, it was the five of them that would ride this round.

"Hey, Mari, do you want to sit with me?" Masashi asked, seeing this to be his chance. Atsushi had sat with her last time, and since the man was unfriendly toward the rest of them, he was sure that he would ask her to be his partner again.

"Oh, sure," Mari said, unbothered.

"Well, there's no way in hell I'll sit with him," Sayua said, eyeing the archaeologist, "so I think I'll be buddies with the other guy instead."

"You hear that, Tanjiro? You get to sit with another girl! Truly, this must be a wonderful night for you!" Sorao said. Though he spoke jokingly, undoubtedly, there was something off about his tone as well.

"That is enough out of you, silly jackanapes," Atsushi said, staring angrily at him. "I wish not to have our time wasted by your tomfoolery. Now be gone already."

Sorao sighed as he shrugged his shoulders. "Man, can't you take a chill pill? I was only making a joke."

Atsushi's interference seemed to relieve Tanjiro a bit, as he looked a bit less bothered now. However silly the archaeologist's grudge against Sorao might be, it meant that Atsushi would take the opportunity to speak against him whenever he could, and Masashi must admit that it had its benefits at times.

"So, uh, where's the damn bear?" Sayua asked, whereupon all looked about for the bear.

"Huh… not here, it seems," Sorao said. "I wonder why."

"If I were to guess," Mari said, "I would think that the captain would have you start the ride in his stead. Up to this point, he's done it for us because we all needed to be on the ride, but since some of us will be leaving, there's no need for him to help us anymore."

Atsushi scoffed. "Good riddance. The less the bear is involved, the better it is for us all. Now let us get started already, as I tire of waiting."

"Wow, that's surprising," Sorao said. "I thought you were all suspicious about it and whatnot."

The archaeologist leered at him. "I see now that the ride is not dangerous at all. Nay, it is dangerous only to men of weak heart, and I assure you that I am no such man."

"Is that so…" Sorao said, appearing a bit doubtful of Atsushi's given reason. "Well, whatever. It's swell that you're having a good time with it."

Scoffing at his compliment, Atsushi headed to the carriage with the spade sign by himself. "What fools I must put up with! Would that this night came to an end soon."

Given his overall attitude, Masashi doubted that he minded being by his lonesome for the ride. In a way, though, it was pretty sad, since the man was undoubtedly intelligent and could make for an interesting friend if only he had the will to put up with those whom he deemed lesser.

Before Atsushi could even open the door, however, the door to the room was opened, and in came a certain woman who looked none too amused by what was going on.

"Are you commoners still riding that silly thing?" It was Maiha Hanazawa, who glanced judgmentally at the group, most of whom grew no happier at her coming. "I cannot fathom why you keep falling for the same gimmick."

"Aw, come on, just because you don't like it, it doesn't mean it's bad," Sorao said. "Sure, it's nothing that groundbreaking, but it still gives us a lot of fun."

Maiha scoffed as if he had mumbled something unintelligible to her. "I see little worth when all it does is scare you with supposedly scary images of monsters. It would be another thing if the AR did something impressive, but if this is all it can do, I am right to stay out of your lowly entertainment."

With how high and mighty she sounded, Masashi wondered whether her attitude was simply a cover for her being easily frightened. Maiha was definitely the kind of woman not to admit such a thing—if it were true, of course—and would use the opportunity to put down others.

"And what have you come here for, anyway?" Tanjiro asked warily.

"I'm simply curious about the AR headsets," Maiha answered. "I've seen a few pieces of AR technology before, so I wonder whether there's anything special about the ones used here."

Masashi looked askance at the lady. He had expected her to come here for the lone reason of mocking them, but it seemed that she too was interested in the AR, even if she would not admit it. He watched as Maiha headed to the spade carriage, which Atsushi was to ride, and headed in. Afterwards, she inspected one of the AR headsets and wore it for a bit.

"Hmm... The technology seems far better and fitter for everyday use," Maiha said, looking somewhat pleased, though she kept her prideful voice. "Just a year ago or so, AR technology was incredibly rudimentary and clunky. It would be interesting to know what advancements have been made to better it."

"Are you done with it?" Mari asked.

"Oh, yes, of course." Maiha then stepped out of the carriage. "I've seen what I've come here to see."

Maiha then left, and no one looked the drearier for her absence.

"Well, then, let's get this thing started already, shall we?" Sorao said.

Atsushi sat in the spade carriage, Tanjiro and Sayua in the heart carriage, and Masashi and Mari in the clubs carriage. Once Sorao operated the panel, he and Haruka left, and the third round began.

* * *

"No… more…"

Hardly could Masashi withstand the onslaught of evil monsters. Though they were not real, so frightening and dreadful were they to the senses that their virtualness was irrelevant. If he had ever wanted to impress anyone by going on this ride, his plan would have backfired on him greatly.

When the ride stopped, to his utter amazement, Mari looked way less affected by it than he.

"You look rather shaken by it," Mari remarked. Though she had screamed much during the ride, Masashi had still sensed that she had found the experience rather thrilling.

"Y-You could say that again," Masashi said, feeling slightly disoriented. "H-How could you go through it without getting shaken?"

"Hmm… Well, believe me, it frightened me, but only a little bit," Mari answered. "It's important to keep in mind that frightening images are meant to evoke in us our primal fear of death. But I'm not particularly worried about that."

"H-Huh?"

Masashi stared at her with more confusion than wonder this time. The last part puzzled him the most, since it was her reason for keeping a calmer mind during the ride, and she essentially deemed herself exceptional in some way.

"Well, no use in staying here any longer," Mari said, keeping her calm countenance. "The others are waiting."

"Right…" Masashi said, seeing that she had simply redirected the conversation's subject instead of going into detail about her less fearful reaction. It was a rather telling reaction, and Masashi, of course, grew more curious about the story behind it, but now was not the right time to delve into it more.

When Masashi and Mari left the carriage, Tanjiro and Sayua stood by their carriage, the latter looking much happier than the former.

"Hah, can you believe it guys? Tanjiro here's a great scaredy-cat!" Sayua said mockingly. "He screamed at nearly everything that came at us!"

"W-Well, that's the point, isn't it?" Tanjiro said. "This ride's meant to scare us. It's only natural that I screamed. And besides, didn't you scream a lot as well?"

Sayua scoffed. "No way! I only screamed a few times, so I'm clearly nothing like you—"

"Setting that aside," Mari said, her expression having grown more worried, "do you know where Atsushi is?"

"Huh?" Masashi looked around and saw no signs of him. Even though all the doors had been unlocked, his carriage's doors had not been opened, so he could not have left already.

"Weird… What's going on with him?" Tanjiro said.

"Well… Only one way to find out," Mari said. "Let's go check."

The group hurried to his carriage, and Mari knocked on the door. "Atsushi, are you all right? The ride's over already."

No response came.

"Atsushi? Atsushi?" Mari said, knocking on the door again. "Atsushi...?"

When no response came once again, she waited no longer and opened it. But no sooner had she opened it than the four students gasped and froze at what awaited them.

All this time, Masashi had never expected it to happen. He had been so certain that things would never turn out this way. Surely no one would ever think about doing it. It was one of the evilest deeds that he could fathom, after all.

But right now, he could only stand wordlessly as the result of his naivety stared right at him.

There, on the carriage's seat, sat Atsushi, a knife having been plunged right into the chest, blood flowing onto the floor. Since the AR headset was still on him, none of them could see the agony and pain in his eyes. The blood's rank smell now reached outside, making Masashi feel all the keener to leave, and yet, the very sight kept him frozen and still.

"Holy fucking shit... Someone's actually done it!" Sayua said, her voice containing a mix of incredulity and shock.

"I... I can't believe it!" Tanjiro said, quivering at the ghastly sight. "He's... He's dead!"

"A-Atsushi..." Mari said, having backed away from the sight, eyes slightly widened, mouth covered by her right hand.

And not long after, an all too familiar chime rang through the speaker, signaling an announcement from the captain.

"A body has been discovered!" Monokuma blithely said. "You all must go to the merry-go-round room at once! Failure to follow this simple order is grounds for punishment!"

As if the bloody scene had not been proof enough, Monokuma's announcement made it clear: the killing game had claimed Atsushi Morokuzu, the Ultimate Archaeologist, as its first victim.

* * *

**And here it is at last. The killing has taken place, and let me tell you, it was pretty tough to write this chapter, since we'll have to bid farewell to a member of our cast. I feel sorry for Atsushi, since I think he's a pretty interesting guy (however condescending he may be), and it's a shame that someone has to die, and he's the one I've chosen. I've thought long and hard about which character is best for the role of Chapter 1 victim, and after running through a lot of possible scenarios that I could explore, I've decided that this is the one I'll go with.**

**And hey, it's Danganronpa, and you who sent me your characters knew what it entailed, so hopefully, you've enjoyed the time that you've spent with Atsushi. And I hope that you'll stick around for the rest of the ride even if your characters die!**

**Anyway, which character do you think is the killer? And how do you think the killer pulled it off? The investigation hasn't begun yet, of course, but I'd still like to hear your first thoughts and guesses about the killing!**


	11. The Woodland King Comes (7)

A few seconds later, the door to the merry-go-round room was opened. It was Murphy that had opened it, and through the open door ran Sister Hikari and Kumi as well.

"What in God's name is going on?" Murphy asked, utterly bemused. "There was this announcement about a body or something!"

"Um… well… You'd better take a look for yourself."

Masashi regained some of his pluck and directed them to the bloody sight, upon seeing which the newcomers shrieked.

"God help us all!" Sister Hikari cried out, covering her mouth.

"I-It can't be…" Murphy said, all confusion replaced by sheer dread. "The man's… dead… My God, someone's done it and killed the damned fool!"

Whimpering, Kumi backed away and clutched fast onto his teddy bear as if it were his only means of support, water welling in his eyes. Masashi could hardly blame him for feeling frightened and confused; this must be the first time that he had seen such a sight, and Kumi's childishness and bliss ignorance had made him unready for this.

Right afterwards, the door was opened once again, and this time, it was Sorao, Hikari, Abraham, and Red Mask.

"Holy shit!" Sorao said, arms raised, once the foursome saw the scene. "He… He's dead! He's fucking dead!"

Abraham snarled, only slightly taken aback. "What a fucking mess this all is..."

"H-How could you just say that?" Hikari said, rattled. "D-Don't you care he's dead?"

Red Mask let out an unconvincing chuckle. "Wh-What are you talking about? Atsushi is dead, you say? No, no, you have it wrong! This whole thing's fake! I mean, I once had to hide in a coffin during one of my heists!"

"That's not even remotely the same thing," Abraham responded, none too amused, "and, oh, moreover... _how would you explain all the damn blood and the knife thrust into his body?_"

Red Mask flinched, growing more and more aghast as she had no good answer to that. However much he might agree with the sentiment behind her failed attempt to deny it, Atsushi would clearly never rise again.

Not long after arrived Futaba, Faye, Haruyuki, Arashi, Haruka, and Maiha. Unsurprisingly, they all were shocked by the scene of their classmate's murder.

"Oh my God…" Faye said, raising her hands in confusion.

"Th-This is horrible!" Haruka whimpered, quivering.

"No… Atsushi!" Futaba cried out, looking more and more dazed.

"A-Aah..." Arashi said, water welling in his eyes. "_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!_"

Haruyuki said nothing, but for the most part, he looked rather calm, his shock having fleeted. Meanwhile, Maiha covered her mouth, shaking her head disapprovingly. She let out no noise, but Masashi had a feeling that she too was quite shaken by the unsightly scene.

"Puhuhuhuhu! Looks like everyone's here now!"

Monokuma appeared in his usual manner, smiling a wicked smile.

"Wh-What is the meaning of this?!" Futaba said at once, pointing at him accusingly. "What have you done?!"

"Oh, come on, why do you look at me as if I were the guilty one here?" Monokuma said. "Isn't it clear that one of you has done the dirty deed of killing him?"

A few others grew more shocked at Monokuma's announcement. It was already obvious that Atsushi's death had been no accident, but to hear it straight from the horse's mouth had only worsened the mood.

"Then it's true that one of us is the killer?" Murphy said, utterly flabbergasted as he stared at his peers, carefulness in his eyes.

Monokuma cackled. "Ah, that suspicion… that wariness… that's one of the things we all love to see in a killing game! Of course, I already know the answer, but you'll have to go through the class trial and work out the answer!"

"And if we vote for the wrong person," Maiha said matter-of-factly, "we who are innocent die, and the killer among us leaves this place."

"That's right! And you know the other half of the deal: if you get it right, only the blackened shall be executed!"

Monokuma looked uncaring of the protests that the others had against this. Masashi could not tell whether for each individual person here, the protest was due to the sick nature of the class trial or the fact that that person was truly the killer. Either way, nothing seemed to persuade Monokuma not to make them go through this. Another one of them would soon die, and the despair that Atsushi's death had brought would only continue.

"Anyway," Monokuma said, his ignoring of the complaints enough to silence the group, "I can't very well let you have a class trial right away! You haven't even begun your investigation yet, and without one, we won't have any crap and whatnot to argue about!"

Monokuma then handed each student a black tablet that looked much like a Monopad. When Masashi turned it on, the screen showed nothing but the words "Monokuma File 1".

"And you know, I doubt you want to go examine the guy's body as part of the procedure," Monokuma continued. "Of course, you're all welcome to, but in any case, I've done you the hard work! I've given you details about the crime that will help you figure out who the blackened is! It's all in that handy file… the Monokuma File!"

"And of course, none of these details lead us directly to the blackened, yes?" Haruyuki said.

"Of course not! Otherwise, things would be too easy for you, don't you think?" Monokuma answered. "Now, then, I suppose I shouldn't delay you guys any longer! Have a nice investigation, everyone!"

That said, Monokuma disappeared, and at once, all the students agreed that they ought to read the Monokuma File.

_"The victim is Atsushi Morokuzu, the Ultimate Archaeologist. The body was found in the merry-go-round room around midnight. The victim was killed in the carriage of the spade suit, and the estimated time of death is 11:55 p.m. The victim died from being stabbed multiple times in the chest with a kitchen knife. No other injuries have been found."_

The more Masashi looked at it, the more frustrated he was at the amount of information given. There was little that he could find useful, and there seemed to be nothing special about the weapon, either; it was only a kitchen knife, which any one of them could have used without a hitch.

Maiha heaved a great sigh. "If only our killer simply admitted it, we could end our predicament right here and now."

Haruyuki showed a wry smile. "Implying that you are innocent, I see."

"Of course I am. I've killed no one," Maiha answered. "Why, with your snide remark, I should think you wish to place the blame on me!"

"Well, now, there's no need to bicker about who the culprit is," Sorao said, who had an uncharacteristically stern look on his face. "In fact, I think I know who it is."

"Y-You do?" Hikari said doubtfully, the others looking skeptically at him. "B-But how?"

"Well, you see, to kill Atsushi, the culprit must've had access to this room," Sorao answered. "And the culprit also must not have had any alibi, right?"

"I-Indeed," Futaba said, still shaken and almost looking as if she were about to faint.

"And there's only one way into this room," Sorao continued. "The door, of course—"

"Now hang on."

This time, it was Mari.

"You assume that the killer could go through the door only," Mari explained. "But there is another way, and I think it's time that it were revealed."

Though most of the others became confused once again, it was then that Futaba apparently became aware of what she was talking about. "Surely you do not suggest…"

"Well, I'm not sure about it," Mari said, "but I think there's no point in hiding it anymore."

Futaba made no protest as Mari headed over to the control panel. Beside it was a familiar yellow mushroom, and she moved it such that it revealed the small door underneath. When she opened it and pressed the button inside, a rumbling sound rang through the room, and the hidden door revealed itself.

"Wh-What the hell?" Sorao said, looking as flabbergasted as the others at the opened wall. "What the hell is that?"

"It's a passageway to a library," Mari answered. "Only a few others such as Lady Inoshishi and I knew of that room."

Sorao and the others looked at Futaba, who looked a bit shamefaced that her secrecy had ended up being in vain.

"It seems that our leader here knows more than she lets on," Maiha said, looking at her with a hint of derision.

"Well, I admit that I knew of the hidden door," Futaba replied, a little rattled by the sudden gazes, "but you must believe me when I say that I have never stepped inside it! I left its investigation to Atsushi!"

"Still, it means that the killer could've hidden in the hidden room," Tanjiro said, amazed. "But... if the killer did use it, they must've been someone who knew about it..."

"Well, I don't think we should go around accusing one another until we look at the evidence," Sister Hikari said.

"I think likewise," Haruyuki said. "We must remember that the cost of voting for the wrong person is death. There is no need to reach a conclusion so quickly. If we want judgment, we shall find it in the class trial."

The whole group eventually agreed to hold off on the accusations, but judging from the faces of some of them, Masashi sensed that they had certain persons in mind.

_Which person here is lying to the rest of us?_ Masashi thought as he eyed his peers. He wanted to think them all to be innocent, but one of them was undoubtedly guilty, and the objective now was to root the liar out.

* * *

Most of the others scattered to other rooms, which left only Masashi, Mari, Haruyuki, Murphy, and Faye, the last two of whom had been designated the guards to watch over the crime scene lest the culprit attempt to get rid of any incriminating evidence. Meanwhile, Mari said that she would check the hidden room for any clues, and so she headed there.

"Well… I guess we shouldn't dilly-dally any more," Masashi said.

"Indeed," Haruyuki said. "Normally, I prefer to stay out of these sordid affairs, but when my life is on the line, I suppose there is little reason for me to simply observe, is there?"

Haruyuki then let out an eerily hearty chuckle, as if this were in any thing fascinating. If he were trying to sound reassuring at all, all he did instead was make Masashi think him to be a bit creepier than he already looked. Still, his expertise could prove useful, and it was good to have another pair of eyes look at the scene.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Monokuma File**

Masashi headed to the spade carriage, followed by Haruyuki. For a moment, he stopped upon seeing Atsushi's corpse. Even though he had no serious problems with looking at blood, he still thought it to be unsightly and disgusting.

_The sooner I'm done with this, the better,_ Masashi thought as he climbed into the carriage and avoided stepping on the blood. Thankfully, it was not a small carriage but a great one, one wherein it was easy not to bump one's head on the ceiling. _That also means that it wouldn't be too hard for someone to kill Atsushi while inside the carriage…_

Masashi looked at the kitchen knife and, in no time, saw something weird: on the haft appeared to be pink glitter.

"Glitter, you say?" Haruyuki said.

"Yeah, a lot of the haft is covered with it," Masashi answered.

"How peculiar…" Haruyuki said, looking not at all bothered. "Now how could glitter get onto the murder weapon of all things? And where would one even get glitter?"

"From the shop."

It was Murphy that had answered. Come to think of it, Murphy had been cleaning at the shop when Masashi had seen him before the ride's first round.

"There's a bunch of cans of glitter available there," Murphy continued. "I reckon the killer could've grabbed one of them and used it for some reason."

Masashi could hardly imagine why the killer would feel the need to use glitter, since all that needed to be done was simply stab the knife into Atsushi. And from the looks of it, that was exactly what the killer had done.

"So did anyone take any of the cans?" Masashi asked.

"I'm not sure whether you think of it as good news, but I'll answer you anyway: the only ones who took any cans of glitter were the piano boy and that boy with the fairy wings."

"Sorao and Kumi?" Masashi said, surprised. "Wait, are you sure?"

"Sure as sure can be. I was in the shop the whole time," the Irishman answered bluntly. "Actually… while I was slacking off in the shop, that phantom thief girl aloso took some glitter an hour before nighttime. But the thing is that she took the last can of yellow glitter."

"Yellow glitter?" Masashi said. "Was the pink glitter offered alongside the yellow glitter?"

"Nope. Only after she got the last can did Monokuma come with a new box of glitter, even though it was pink glitter," Murphy answered. "Afterwards, a few others visited the shop as well, but they didn't take anything. But those two guys got a hold of the stuff, no doubt. Sorao said it looked interested, so he took a can of the pink glitter. And that Kumi boy said he needed it for hunting or something, so he took two cans."

_Oh… Well, that's interesting to keep in mind,_ Masashi thought.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Glitter on Knife's Haft - For some reason, there is pink glitter on the knife's haft. Could it have been left by the culprit?**

"By the way," Masashi asked, "were you _truly_ in the store during the murder?"

"You don't trust me, huh? Well, I don't blame you at all. This whole night's gone mad, and to top it all off, one of us is a killer in hiding!" Murphy then cracked a wry smile. "But I've got good news for you: I have a watertight alibi! Sister Hikari came into the shop sometime before the third round."

"She was?" Masashi said. Now that he thought about it, Sister Hikari had left before the third round, saying that she wanted to do something else. And she had been with Murphy and Kumi when they had come after hearing the body discovery announcement.

Murphy nodded keenly. "She'd just gone on the ride, and so she looked a bit tired. But that didn't stop her from insisting that I let her help with the cleaning."

In other words, Murphy and Sister Hikari had alibis for the whole third round, and they could safely be disregarded as suspects. It was good to make some progress on determining which of them were innocent.

"One more question," Haruyuki said. "When did Sorao and Kumi take the cans of glitter?"

"As for Sorao, around the beginning of nighttime. And as for Kumi, right after Sister Hikari arrived to help me," Murphy answered at once.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Murphy's Account - Murphy was in the shop the whole time tonight. An hour before nighttime, Red Mask came and took the last can of yellow glitter, which caused Monokuma to refresh the stock with cans of pink glitter. Around the beginning of nighttime, Sorao came to take a can of pink glitter. Before the third round began, Sister Hikari came to help Murphy, and right after that, Kumi came and took two cans of pink glitter.**

Leaving Murphy alone, Masashi turned back to the body and looked at the knife again. The haft was the only part that was covered in glitter, but otherwise, it seemed to be an unremarkable knife.

"Hey, come to think of it," Masashi said, "doesn't the Monokuma File say this is a kitchen knife? Faye, do you recognize this knife?"

Faye, who carried a happy disposition, looked closer at the knife. "Uh… I think I've seen that knife before. I'm pretty sure it was in the kitchen yesterday." She cocked her head sideways, pondering. "But… this morning, I did notice that there were a few kitchen supplies missing. I didn't think too much about it, since I just assumed some of the others had taken them."

"And do you have any idea as to who might have taken the knife?"

Faye shook her head dejectedly. "Sorry! The kitchen's open at nighttime, so any one of us could've taken anything from the kitchen then!"

_Huh, that's pretty disappointing..._ Masashi thought. _But I should've figured things wouldn't be that easy._

"Oh, and by the way…" Faye said. "I guess you want to know what I was doing during the murder, right?"

"If you have an alibi, it'll help us get through this more quickly," Masashi said.

"Well… I was all alone… in the kitchen, that is," Faye answered. "But I couldn't have done it. Haruyuki, you can back me up, can't you?"

Haruyuki let out a hearty yet shady chuckle. "Ah, yes, of course. I was in the dining room the whole time, and during the third round, Faye and Futaba arrived. Faye went into the kitchen to cook the lady something, and in the meantime, Futaba and I were chatting about a few things."

"And you know what that means!" Faye said confidently. "I may have been alone in the kitchen, but you need to remember: if I had wanted to leave the kitchen, I would've had to go through the dining room, where Haruyuki and Futaba were! Sure, they didn't see me, but I swear to you, I was busy with cooking us a meal!"

"Thus, in other words, even though she was alone, it was impossible for her to go to the merry-go-round room without our spotting her," Haruyuki concluded.

_Wow… her alibi sounds ironclad. I don't think there's any reason to doubt her now._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Faye's Account - Before the third round began, Faye and Futaba headed over to the dining room. While Faye was by herself in the kitchen, Futaba was talking with Haruyuki. If Faye had tried to leave the kitchen, the other two would have spotted her.**

Masashi returned to his examination of the body. Now that they were done with the knife, he began to examine the corpse.

"Ugh…" Masashi groaned as he looked more closely at the wounds. It was hard not to think that the killer had not overdone it in the deed, but then again, it might have been done to ensure that Atsushi should die. He of course had no experience in killing people, and so it might actually be harder than one might think.

"Masashi, have you not noticed that there is something… missing?" Haruyuki asked.

"Missing?" Masashi then looked about, wondering what Haruyuki might be referring to.

"Yes. As you can see, the poor man has lost quite a bit of blood," the art critic explained. "But that is the problem: there is far too little blood here. The man was stabbed more than once, so one would think that much more of the carriage would be bloody.

"Huh… Now that I think about it, you're right!" Masashi said. Whatever had happened to all that blood? He looked around the carriage and noticed that there was something sticking out from the space underneath the carriage seating. It appeared to be a tablecloth, but when he took it out, he reeled back upon seeing the bloodstains on it.

Haruyuki chuckled. "The mystery of the blood has been solved. If all mysteries were solved quickly, why, we may be done with this sooner than I thought."

_Well, I don't want to imagine what it'd be like if all the blood were here and not on the tablecloth._ Masashi recalled Kumi's shock, and the more he thought about it, the more he grew certain that such a bloody sight would have given the poor boy nightmares.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Bloody Tablecloth - ****By the body was found a**** tablecloth covered with blood.**

He then noticed the pockets of the archaeologist's beige jacket. Loath as he was to look through others' private possessions, at this point, anything that he could find might help him find the killer, and so he could only pray that Atsushi forgive him this.

After searching the pockets, he found only one thing: a folded note that was thankfully intact. He unfolded it and read aloud its contents:

_"If you wish to learn the secret of this ship, make sure to ride one of the carriages of the merry-go-round by yourself on the third round. Once you are done, the secret shall be yours. Make sure to tell no one of this message."_

"Wh-What the?" Masashi said, utterly bemused. The note's contents mentioned the ride's third round, the same round in which Atsushi had died. There was no way that that could be a coincidence.

"Intriguing…" Haruyuki said. "It seems that Atsushi must have gotten this note. I think it likely that he followed its instructions. Why else would it be in his pocket, if he had had no interest in it?"

"Yeah… Can't argue with that."

Masashi wondered what the secret was that the note had promised to tell him, but seeing that its sender was unknown, he had no way to delve into it.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Atsushi's Note - This note was found in Atsushi's pocket. The handwriting is not distinct enough to tell who the writer is.**

Seeing nothing else to examine, Masashi left the carriage and saw that Haruyuki was looking at the floor underneath the carriage.

"Ah… I see…" Haruyuki showed a pleased smile and chuckled. "Masashi, look at this."

He pointed at a certain spot by the carriage's back wheels. There was a very small drop of blood, but more remarkably, for some reason, it looked rather incomplete, as if it had been cut in half, so to speak. Haruyuki then pointed at a spot by the front wheels, and there was a drop of blood there as well. To his surprise, it looked like the lower half of the other spot.

"Wh-What the?" Masashi said, cocking his head. "How are these two blood spots…"

"It is intriguing, is it not?" Haruyuki said. "I'm afraid that I cannot offer any explanation for this, however. I lack information about this ride, and so I'll have to ask someone else for the details."

But even so, Masashi still had no idea as to how these two blood spots came to be. There was something odd about them, but he could not fathom now as to what it might be.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Two Blood Spots - For some reason, there are two blood spots, one by the front wheels, and one by the back wheels. One blood spot appears to be the lower half of the other.**

Now that he was done with looking at the crime scene, it was time to gather witness accounts and pinpoint where everyone was during the murder, as the killer logically must be someone who had no alibi.

"I shall continue looking around here," Haruyuki said. "In the meantime, you ought to go investigate other rooms. It'll be interesting to see the results of your investigation."

Haruyuki let out another chuckle, whereafter Masashi left the room in no time. He was an interesting man, and he had been of some help during the examination of the carriage, but there was no denying how creepy he easily came off as.

As he left, he saw Hikari standing by the shop door and doing nothing in particular. Given her gloomy and mistrustful nature, he was not surprised to see the spirit medium not doing much to help with the investigation.

"Wh-What do you want?" Hikari asked, giving him the evil eye.

"Hey, no need to look at me like that. I only want to know what you were doing during the murder," he answered.

Hikari still looked rather rattled, but his answer seemed to have calmed her a bit.

"A-All right… If it h-helps…" she said. "L-Look, I swear, I-I was in my room the whole time. I-I only left my room a minute before I heard th-that awful announcement!" Hikari then glanced elsewhere for a second. "I-I haven't told anyone else this yet, not even Sister Hikari, but if it's you… When I left my room to take a walk… I-I saw him… Sorao… He was going into his room."

"Wait, what?" Masashi said. "Are you sure it was Sorao?"

"Y-Yeah, I'm sure!" Hikari answered. "And… I'm not sure what exactly it was, but I think he was dragging something into his room… I-It looked like rope."

_Rope…?_

His going into his room was not unusual by itself, but since Hikari said that she had left her room around the end of the third round, it meant that Sorao had been outside his room around that time as well. That combined with his apparently stowing rope in his room, Sorao might have been up to something during the killing.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Hikari's Account - Around the end of the third round, Hikari left her room to take a walk, but saw Sorao dragging rope into his room.**

He thanked Hikari for her account and headed over to the garden on the same deck. There, he saw Sayua leaning against the railing that was part of the aperture on the floor. She appeared to be peering down at the garden on the fourth deck.

"Oh, hey!" Sayua said. "What do you want?"

"Uh… Found anything yet?" Masashi asked.

Sayua scoffed. "What makes you think I'm gonna look around? So many of you are looking around already that I don't need to raise a finger, you know?"

_Why can't you just say you're only lazing about?_ Masashi sighed upon seeing whom he had to deal with here.

"Anyway, did you see anything odd during the ride?" Masashi asked.

"Pft, of course not! All I saw were those AR things, anyway," Sayua said. "Nothing seemed out of place! The music was still playing, and that Tanjiro guy was screaming and crying for his dear life!"

"Really?"

"No, but he might as well have. I can tell these things, you know!" Sayua raised her brow. "Hey, what are you giving me that look for? You're not suspecting me, are you? Let me tell you, there's no way I'm the fucking culprit, since Tanjiro and I were both in our carriage!"

"And there was no way to get out of there, since the doors were locked," Masashi finished for her. Of course, he had already eliminated Mari, Tanjiro, and Sayua from his list of suspects.

"Exactly! So leave me alone, will you? There's no reason to think I'm gonna do anything bad, right?" Sayua said, showing a cocky smile.

In the end, what was most important was that Sayua had seen nothing odd during the ride. Everything had run as intended.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Sayua's Account - Neither she nor Tanjiro saw anything out of place during the ride.**

He left her and walked up the stairs to the second deck's starboard hallway. He looked around into the servants' quarters, but nothing seemed to have changed since he had last been here. The only notable thing was the red curtain covering the whole window; if he remembered right, Atsushi had made Faye put it up because it would make the room look better.

_I don't know… I'm not sure how much it fits the whole woodland theme going on here…_ Masashi thought as he stared at the curtain. _I wonder what Atsushi saw in this thing._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Red Curtain - There is a red curtain covering the whole window in the servants' quarters. Atsushi had Faye set it up a few days ago.**

Masashi headed over to the dining room, which was the only room connecting the port and starboard hallways. He then walked to the port hallway and entered the storeroom, to which he had seldom gone for the last few days. There were many wooden boxes as well as nautical equipment like rope, nets, and inner tubes. The room seemed nearly as great as the servants' quarters, the only notable difference being the lack of a window here. The only source of illumination was a light hanging from the roof.

Here, Arashi stood there by his lonesome, looking down at the floor, his expression gloomy. Remembering that he had screamed upon seeing Atsushi's body, Masashi figured that his death must have shocked him greatly.

"_A-Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Arashi widened his eyes upon seeing him. "Wh-What are you doing here?!"

Masashi sensed a lot of fright in his voice, and it became apparent that he had a bit of mistrust in his mind now. He reassured Arashi that he would not hurt him, and thankfully, Arashi's mistrust lessened as he looked less tense.

"U-Um… I'm feeling a bit thirsty right now!" Arashi said. "Could you get me some soda pop? There's a vending machine just outside!"

If it helped calm him down, Masashi was more than glad to do it. He headed outside and saw the vending machine at the other end of the port hallway, a trash can right beside it. The machine offered sundry drinks such as soda pop and water, and thankfully, Monokuma had made it such that it cost nothing to get a drink, so he had no trouble with getting the soda pop.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Vending Machine - There is a vending machine in the second deck's port hallway. It sells many kinds of drinks such as water and soda pop. There is also a trash can nearby. During the investigation, Arashi told Masashi to get him a drink from the machine.**

Arashi, delighted, drank half of the soda pop in one go. "Thanks! I feel much better now!"

Deeming him to be ready for his questions, Masashi asked him what he had been doing earlier tonight.

"Well… It's kinda hard to explain!" Arashi answered. "I was, uh, with Kumi and Haruka by the shop. We were getting ready for the fairy hunting!" He pondered a bit. "Well, after Sister Hikari headed into the shop, Kumi headed in as well, since he'd forgotten about the glitter! It was very important for the hunt of the Woodland King… I think."

"And then what?"

"Um… I think Kumi had Haruka help him put glitter on his palms," Arashi answered. "Then Haruka and I headed to this deck. She checked this room out, while I was looking around in the servants' quarters, the room with all those beds and the red curtain!"

Unfortunately, Arashi had apparently been there the whole time, which meant that he had no one to back up his innocence. He could not remove him from the list of suspects unless he found more evidence of Arashi's activities during the murder.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Arashi's Account - Arashi claims to have been in the servants' quarters the whole time.**

"By the way, have you found anything of interest in this storeroom?" Masashi asked.

"Um… Sorry, but I haven't found anything weird!" Arashi said. "But I'll keep looking, anyway!"

Thanking him for his information, Masashi headed over to the main deck, which could only be accessed through the stairs in the second deck's port hallway. Happily, the strong winds had died out, and the clouds were gone, which let the moon shine brightly and lighten up the stars strewn throughout the dark heavens. If this were any other time, this would be a wonderful sight to behold. But the investigation called, and he would have to do his stargazing another time.

Masashi spotted Futaba and Sorao by the aperture on the deck, Sorao leaning casually against the aperture's railing.

"Ah, Masashi, you need any help?" Sorao said, giving him a small but friendly smile.

"Thanks, but no thanks. I think I'll keep looking around by myself," Masashi answered, much as he appreciated the gesture. "I do want some information from you, though."

"Our alibis, I presume," Futaba said, looking a bit perturbed. It seemed that she had not fully recovered from the sight of her deputy's corpse, and it was a wonder that she had not fainted.

"Yeah. You were with Haruyuki at the time, right?" Masashi said.

Just to be sure, he had her give him her account. It matched up with Haruyuki's exactly, but there was one thing that she added.

"I suppose he forgot to tell you this, but it wasn't only we two in the dining room," Futaba said. "There was one more person with us for a short while. It was Maiha."

Now it was Masashi that looked surprise. "Wait, really? Maiha was there?"

"Yes, but I don't blame the man for forgetting to take her into account. As I said, she was with us only temporarily," Futaba continued. "Not long after Faye entered the kitchen, Maiha left for the restroom by herself and came back only a minute before we heard the body discovery announcement."

"Huh, is that so..." Masashi said, his suspicions rising higher and higher. Maiha was by far the least likable of the group, and with the great amount of time Maiha had to herself, it was only reasonable to think that she might have been up to something.

And come to think of it, she had suddenly visited the group right before the third round. She had claimed to merely want to check the AR headsets, and she happened to have checked the one in the spade carriage, the same carriage that Atsushi would later ride. Only after her departure had the group then boarded the carriages. Had that been a coincidence?

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Maiha's Activities - Maiha suddenly visited the merry-go-round room, supposedly only to check the AR headsets. She happened to check the headset in the spade carriage. Later on, she left the dining room sometime during the third round, claiming to go to the restroom.**

"And one more thing," Futaba said. "I believe that the clown went to the storeroom at the time. At no point did she come back until we all heard the awful announcement."

On the other hand, since Haruka had been in the storeroom, and Haruyuki and Futaba had been at the dining room, they would have spotted her if she had tried to head over to the merry-go-round room. Even if she had been alone at the time, the only other place she could have gone to while unseen was the main deck, and there was no way to go to the merry-go-round room from here. In other words, she had the same kind of alibi as Faye. Masashi sighed in relief as he eliminated another suspect from his list.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Haruka's Account - Futaba and Haruyuki saw Haruka go into the port hallway. She was apparently searching for something in the storeroom. At no point did the two see her come back into the dining room until the body discovery announcement played.**

Now it was Sorao's turn to speak. He looked oddly happy upon being bidden to say what he had been doing. "Masashi, you'll be happy to know that I'm innocent."

"Huh, really," Masashi said, intrigued by how confident he looked.

"Yep. See, right after I left you guys, I headed to the men's restroom on the second deck," Sorao began. "Then I quickly headed over to my room and stayed there until I heard the announcement."

"Oh, I see… Hey, wait a minute!" Masashi said, surprised.

"Wh-What?" Sorao looked at him worriedly.

Masashi had remembered what Hikari had told him earlier, and if she had indeed seen Sorao outside his room right before the announcement, then it meant that Sorao had just lied about being in his room the whole time.

"Masashi, is something the matter?" Sorao asked, looking more and more concerned. "You look a bit out of it."

"Oh, uh, sorry about that!" Masashi said. "I was just wondering… How is that an alibi?"

Whether or not Hikari had lied, Masashi had the feeling that he had better save this topic for the class trial. Even if he trusted Sorao, this was something to talk about with the rest of the class. And he needed more information from him right now, so mentioning the topic would only derail things.

"After all, you could've gone to the merry-go-round and killed Atsushi, right?" Masashi said as politely as he could. "I'm not saying you did, but I'm only pointing out there was nothing stopping you."

To his surprise, Sorao's face lost all worry, and he let out a soft chuckle instead.

"Ah, that's the part you're confused about," Sorao said. "Well, that's the funny thing… Do you remember when I said earlier that I thought I knew who the culprit was?"

Masashi recalled that Sorao had been explaining something like that right before Mari had interrupted him and revealed to the rest of the group the hidden door. Come to think of it, what had he been going to say then?

"Here's the interesting thing," Sorao answered, placing his left arm relaxedly on the aperture's railing. "Do you know that Kumi was standing outside the merry-go-round for all the third round?"

"_He was?_" Masashi said before recalling Arashi's account. When he and Haruka had left for the second deck, Kumi must have stayed behind at the hallway.

"Yep. I passed by him on the way back to my room," Sorao said. "I asked him what he was doing, and he said that he was there to keep an eye out for some fairy or something."

"Wait… then that means…" Masashi said, realizing what Sorao was getting at. "Since Kumi was there the whole time, he essentially knew who entered and left the room!"

Sorao smirked. "Exactly. And as he'd tell you, I only headed downstairs and never headed back up. I was on the fourth deck the whole time. And thus…" Sorao flickered with the fringe of red hair over his right eye. "I have a rather solid alibi, don't you think?"

"Yeah… That's for sure." Masashi cracked a smile, now knowing that Sorao was innocent.

"And by the way," Sorao added, "I heard from Sister Hikari earlier. She's apparently been gathering our alibis, and I've heard from her that Red Mask, Hikari, and Abraham claim to have been in their rooms the whole time. You know what that means, right?"

"Yeah, if Kumi says he never saw them, they're also innocent," Masashi said. "Of course, I'll have to ask him about that."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Sorao's Account - Sorao went to the men's restroom on the second deck and then headed over to the hallway in the third deck. In that short interval, he was alone. ****Afterwards, he passed by Kumi in the hallway. Sorao claims that because Kumi saw him only when he headed back down to the fourth deck, he could not have gone into the merry-go-round room. Sorao claims to have stayed in his room afterwards. **

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Fourth Deck Denizens' Accounts - Abraham, Hikari, and Red Mask apparently stayed in their rooms after nighttime began, though Hikari did leave her room around the end of the third round.**

"So where is Kumi, anyway?" Masashi asked.

"I believe that he's in the third deck's lounge," Futaba answered, not perturbed by what Sorao had just said. He must have told her his alibi as well already. "I think that the clown was consoling him."

"Oh, thank you," Masashi said. "And by the way… Sorao."

"Yes?"

"I don't think you should be leaning against that thing," Masashi said, pointing at the railing right by the aperture. "Aren't you worried that if that thing breaks, you'll fall to your death?"

The main apertures in the ship were lined up in such a way that one could see the fourth deck's garden from the main deck, and they were wide enough for someone to fall through. Even though Masashi could see no damage done to the railing, after Atsushi's killing, it behooved them all to be a bit carefuller from now on.

But Sorao merely chuckled heartily at Masashi's worries. "Not a fan of heights, I assume? Well, don't you worry about it, buddy. The railing's very sturdy, so it's not going to break or anything, and I'm not going to die any time soon."

* * *

When Masashi arrived at the hallway, Haruka had just opened the door to the lounge on her way out, and she looked much more relieved upon seeing him.

"I've been trying to liven up Kumi for a while now!" Haruka explained. "Let me tell you, I'm not really good at this kind of thing, especially when it's only me and him!"

And in that kind of situation, making jokes was definitely not a good idea. Even Haruka ought to be aware of when jokes were out of place. But even so, it was good that Haruka, the joke maker, had still decided to look after Kumi at this dark time. Even though someone like Sister Hikari could have done it instead, Haruka had gone out of her way to help him.

"Well, is he all right?" Masashi asked.

"Um… I think he is," Haruka answered, a great deal of worry in her voice. "He was pretty shocked that Atsushi's now gone, and frankly, I don't blame him! I don't think any of us could've seen it coming! But thankfully, though he's a bit less talkative than usual, he's calmed down a bit."

"That's good to hear!" Masashi said, relieved that Kumi had started to recover from this. "I guess I should go talk with him—"

"Oh, Masashi, one more thing!" Haruka said suddenly. Despite the energy in her voice, she looked a bit hesitant. "I've been thinking... Since Atsushi was killed during the ride, that meant the killer knew how to exploit it, right?"

"Hmm… I think that's right," Masashi answered. "Then… that'd mean the killer must have ridden on the ride."

"Um, not exactly…" Haruka looked downwards as she gripped her left elbow. "I don't really want to say it, but… if I don't, then things may end up badly for us all."

Masashi raised his brow, startled by her sudden concern. "Why, what's the matter?"

Haruka kept her gloomy face as she answered. "After the first round, when we were taking a break, I talked about the ride with Kumi and Arashi. Kumi didn't want to ride it, but he still wanted to hear what it was all about. Yesterday, after we had agreed on our plans for tonight, Kumi had asked me to give him the details later."

"Well, that's not too weird," Masashi replied. "Why the long face, though?"

Haruka heaved a great dreary sigh. "I… I don't want to think about it, but do you think that I unwittingly helped the killer?"

"What? What makes you think Kumi or Arashi did it?" Masashi said, shocked at her suggestion.

"No, no, I don't mean to accuse either of them!" Haruka said. "It's just that… when I told them, I think that Maiha woman was in earshot."

"She was?!" Masashi blurted out, not having expected to hear that.

Haruka nodded hesitantly. "I'm not sure on how much she heard, but I think she could've heard enough to… well…"

Though she left it unsaid, it was clear that Haruka suspected Maiha to some extent, and Masashi could hardly blame her, given how Maiha had been acting so far.

"By the way… if you're going to talk with Kumi," Haruka said a bit more seriously, "you should be a bit careful."

"Careful?" Masashi said, puzzled.

"Yeah… While calming him down earlier, I don't know why, but I sensed something… weird about him," Haruka answered, giving the door a sidelong glance. "He's all right now, but… I had the feeling that he was hiding something from me."

"Huh… That is weird," Masashi replied, wondering what this meant. "All right, I'll be careful."

Once they were done, Haruka left, saying that she was going to look for Arashi. Since he had a great many questions to ask Kumi, Masashi headed into the lounge.

"S-Sir Masashi?"

Kumi sat on one of the chairs, still holding onto his teddy bear, which was dressed like a knight. Given how much he liked to hold onto it, Masashi guessed that he would feel much less safe without it.

"Ah, Kumi, everything's all right, right?" Masashi asked, showing him a bright smile.

Kumi nodded, albeit with a bit of uncertainty. The more closely Masashi looked at him, the more it was clear that he had been weeping for a good while. Thankfully, he seemed to be in a happier mood now.

"Um… Sir Masashi?" Kumi said. "I-Is there any way I can help? I… I still can't believe Sir Atsushi's death, but if we don't do anything, the evil warlock will win, won't he? I-I don't want him to get away with killing Sir Atsushi!"

Even now, Kumi still clung to his fantastic thinking when trying to take in tonight's events. Silly as it was, Masashi knew that telling him to drop it was not a good idea, especially when it would undo all the work that Haruka had done to calm him down.

"As a matter of fact, there _is_ a way for you to help," Masashi said reassuringly. "I have a few questions for you, and it's _very_ important that you answer them."

"R-Really?!" Kumi said, sounding almost as energetic as he usually was. "I'll be glad to answer them, Sir Masashi! But, um…"

Kumi tapped his foot on the floor nervously. "Sir Masashi, could you take me to the restroom? I… I don't really want to go there by myself now."

There would only be trouble later on if he did not let Kumi relieve himself, so Masashi walked with him to the second deck. After they climbed up the stairs and arrived at the starboard hallway, they turned to the right and found the men's restroom.

"I'll just wait outside, all right?" Masashi said.

Kumi nodded softly and entered the restroom by himself, after which Masashi noticed something rather peculiar: the doorknob was covered all over with pink glitter. Masashi was absolutely sure that that had not been the case before Kumi had opened the door and gone inside.

_Wait a minute… Did Kumi have glitter on his hands?_ Masashi thought. All this time, Kumi's hands had been on his teddy bear, so he had not taken a good look at his palms. _And come to think of it… I'm pretty sure the knob of the door to the merry-go-round room doesn't have any glitter on it at all._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Merry-Go-Round Doorknob - The knob of the door to the merry-go-round room does not have a single trace of glitter.**

After a minute or two, the door opened, and Kumi came out, looking slightly happier.

"Ah, Sir Masashi! I'm ready for your questions now!" Kumi said blithely before he looked at Masashi's face. "Huh? Sir Masashi, is something the matter?"

_I might as well be direct here,_ Masashi thought and asked him about the glitter.

"Oh, that! Um, you've got it right, Sir Masashi," Kumi answered. "As part of the hunt for the Woodland King, I had Lady Haruka put glitter on my palms."

"How much glitter?" Masashi asked.

"A whole can's worth!" Kumi answered as he raised his hands, one of which held his teddy bear. It was then that Masashi noticed that Kumi's palms were now clean. "I got two cans, though, since I might have needed the extra can, so I had Lady Haruka put them both back in my satchel."

"Just in case, right?" Masashi said. "But why did you need the glitter in the first place?"

Kumi gasped. "You don't know, Sir Masashi? If you want to have more luck in life, you ought to put something shiny on your palms! That way, creatures that can grant you luck will come your way! They're drawn to shiny things, after all! The commonest creatures of this kind are fairies, and even though I was hunting the Woodland King, not all fairies are on his side, so friendly fairies could still grant me good luck!"

"Uh huh… That's interesting."

"Yep! Thank goodness Sir Arashi suggested that I use glitter."

"Wait, it was Arashi that suggested it?" Masashi said, taken aback.

"Um… I think so!" Kumi answered. "I didn't even know there was glitter on this ship until he told me and Lady Haruka yesterday!"

"And why did you get the glitter only at the last minute?"

Kumi chuckled nervously. "Um... I don't really want to admit it, but I came up with the idea of the hunt last night. I was planning on getting the glitter later, but I was so excited about the hunt that I forgot about it! I only got it after Lady Haruka reminded me about it tonight!"

"Oh, is that so," Masashi said. "Do you still have the other can of glitter on you?"

Kumi nodded excitedly. "I didn't need to use it since the Woodland King never showed up, so I should still have it!"

At that moment, Kumi opened up his satchel and sifted through his sundry things. Once he got out the cans, which were so small that they could fit in one's palm, he looked into them, but grew confused instead.

"_H-Huh?_" Kumi said. "Sir Masashi, both the cans are empty!"

"They are?" Masashi cocked his head, pondering what this meant. "Are you sure you didn't use the other can?"

"I swear on behalf of the citizens of the Pixie Kingdom that I did not use it!" Kumi insisted.

"Then why is it empty now?"

Kumi awkwardly tapped his foot on the ground as he pondered. "Um… Maybe the Woodland King knew about the glitter and sent a scout to make the glitter disappear! One can get rid of the glitter easily with water, so the scout must've used some kind of water spell!"

_If that's what you believe..._ Masashi thought, a bit befuddled by his explanation. Was there anything that he could not attribute to fantastic creatures? Anyway, Kumi mentioned that the glitter could be rid of with only water, so he must have washed off all the glitter on his hands.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Kumi's Glitter - Kumi had Haruka put a can's worth of pink glitter on his palms as part of his hunt for the so-called Woodland King. Apparently, it is a good luck charm, and Arashi suggested that he use the glitter. ****Kumi had two cans of pink glitter, which he had Haruka put in his satchel afterwards. He claims to have used only one, and yet both cans are empty now. ****The glitter seems to be easily removable with water.**

"All right, then, next question," Masashi said. "you were standing outside the merry-go-round room during the murder, right? Sorao said you were. Dd you see anyone during then?"

Kumi thought for a bit. "I… saw only Sir Sorao head down to the fourth deck, where all our rooms are! I didn't see anyone while keeping an eye on the door!"

His answer only made things even more confusing than they already were. If Kumi had seen no one go into the room, then how could the culprit get inside and kill Atsushi in the first place?

"Maybe the evil warlock summoned some of his ghostly minions to kill him!" Kumi suggested. "That explains how the killer evaded my gaze!"

_Yeah, sure,_ Masashi thought. Fun as he was, Kumi was better off chasing after fairies than thinking up of any plausible theories.

"By the way," Masashi said, "were you alone the whole time?"

"Um… yeah. I was in front of the door the whole time, too."

_Oh… I see..._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Kumi's Account - Kumi was outside the merry-go-round door by himself the whole time. The only person he saw after Haruka and Arashi had left was Sorao when he headed down to his room.**

"One more question, and that's it," Masashi said. "Haruka said she'd told you the details of the ride."

"Ah, that's right!" Kumi went through his satchel and took out a notebook. He swiftly flipped through the pages and showed Masashi one particular page that was full of somewhat neat handwriting.

Haunted Woods Details

1\. The four carriages come in separate suits: diamond, clubs, heart, and spade.

2\. Windows of carriages close during the ride, so no one can see through them!

3\. It's really dark inside the carriages!

4\. Lots of scary monsters come out!

5\. Music is really loud as well!

6\. At one point, the carriages start spinning!

7\. And bugs also cover your whole sight at that point!

8\. The instruments also change to drums!

9\. Then the ride goes backwards, and everything goes back to normal!

Masashi took a good look at the page. Nothing in it seemed wrong, as it matched what he remembered, and it served as a nice reminder of what the ride was like.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Kumi's Note - A note of all the details of the ride that Haruka told Kumi. After the first round, Haruka told Kumi and Arashi details of the ride. Apparently, Maiha was in earshot.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Carriage Suits - Each of the four carriages has a distinct suit on the outside.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Normal Portion - During the normal part of the AR ride, all the windows are up, so no one can see through them from either side. Lots of frightening AR creatures emerge as well. Loud music is played throughout.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Spinning Carriages Portion - All the carriages spin at this part, and all the riders' sight is covered with bugs. The music's instruments also change to drums.**

"Well, I suppose it's time to look elsewhere," Masashi said. If truth were told, he wanted Kumi to leave. Kind and charming as he might be, he had a feeling that taking Kumi back to the crime scene might not be the best idea.

"Hey, Kumi, look!" Masashi pointed at the door to the dining room. "I think I've just seen a fairy heading into the dining room!"

Kumi started, facing toward there at once. "R-Really?! Well, then, I've got to get going! Fare thee well, Sir Masashi!"

The storyteller then rushed over to the dining room at once, none the wiser at Masashi's little deception.

_Well, sometimes, a little trickery's needed,_ Masashi thought, a bit proud that his deception had even worked.

Now that Kumi was gone, Masashi thought to head back to the merry-go-round room and see whether the others had found anything new. But there was one room that he had yet to check out. Masashi headed back down to the third deck and walked through the garden to arrive at the playroom. He had thought that there might be nothing remarkable there, but he had needed to be sure. And yet, when he opened the door, he saw Mari.

"Ah, Masashi, there you are," Mari said.

"Oh, you're here!" Masashi said, eyes widened. "Have you found anything here?"

"Well… kind of. You should know that I didn't come here through the door."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Masashi said. "There's only one way to get here, and it's—"

Masashi stopped, realizing what Mari meant. "Ah… the hidden room connects to here as well?"

Mari nodded and led him to a certain spot in the room. There, right behind a log was a yellow mushroom, the same kind of mushroom that unlocked the hidden door in the merry-go-round room. Unlike that mushroom, however, this one, for some reason, was slightly covered with pink glitter.

_There it is again… Glitter…_ Masashi thought. _How was the pink glitter involved with the crime?_

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Yellow Mushrooms - Both yellow mushrooms are part of opening the hidden doors. The yellow mushroom in the playroom has pink glitter on it, unlike the other one.**

Mari knelt down and gripped the mushroom, which meant that the mushroom touched her palm. Once she did the same steps to open the door, a part of the wall on the right side shifted and revealed itself to be a hidden door.

"Let's head over to the other room this way," Mari said. "You'll see what it's like to use the hidden passageway."

He and Mari headed into the hidden room. Though he had never seen this part of the library before, it looked much like the part near the merry-go-round room; there was a red button embedded in one of the nearby shelves, and the hidden door shut in about a minute. And when Masashi tried to nudge it open from the other side, it did not move even an inch.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Hidden Doors - The hidden door remains open for about a minute. From the side of the hidden room, it cannot be opened without pressing the red button. The hidden doors are in the merry-go-round room and the playroom.**

"By the way," Masashi said, "did you and Atsushi ever finish the investigation of this room?"

"Oh, no, but we were nearly done after our inspection last night," Mari answered plainly. "If this killing hadn't happened, we would've finished it tonight."

The two headed further into the room, and soon, Masashi found himself at a familiar part of the library. There was a table right in the middle of the room, and it was the same spot where Atsushi had caught him that night. Masashi could still remember that conversation, in which Atsushi had mentioned something about intellectual curiosity.

"Hey, I've been wondering…" Mari said suddenly, which made Masashi stop walking. "Do you still remember the odd thing that Atsushi did?"

"Huh? What odd thing?"

"Remember when Atsushi told Tanjiro he wanted to ask him something?" Mari said. "Because of that, Tanjiro had to stay on the ride for the third time."

"Oh, yeah… He did say something like that," Masashi said. "Do you have any idea as to what he wanted to ask him?"

Mari shook her head. "No. In fact, that's why I'm asking you it right now."

"Sorry, but my guess is as good as yours," Masashi said.

Just then, a familiar tune rang through the library, which startled Masashi. It was the same tune that had played in the AR ride.

"I think something's going on outside," Mari said. "We should go check it out."

They headed over through the other passageway, and Masashi recalled that this was the side from which he had entered the library. After Mari pressed the red button, the wall shifted, and the familiar sight of the merry-go-round came into their eyes.

There, the merry-go-round was moving, and the room had darkened greatly. The only source of light was the attraction in the middle, but the lighting was incredibly dim, coming from the signs on the four carriages, but the signs were still visible even from afar.

_So this is what the room's like on the outside during the ride,_ Masashi thought.

When they rushed over to the control panel, they found Haruyuki, who must have operated the panel. Murphy and Faye stood by him, beholding the moving machine.

"Ah, my apologies if I have startled you," Haruyuki said upon seeing them. "I merely wanted to see whether the merry-go-round still worked."

After the ride finished the spinning carriages' portion, in which the lighting remained unchanged, Haruyuki pressed the STOP button on the control panel, after which the merry-go-round and the loud music came to a complete stop, and the lights turned back on. The doors to the carriages opened once more, and the spectacle of Atsushi's corpse could be seen.

"It seems to work properly," Haruyuki said. "I do not think that it has been tampered with."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Control Panel - The control panel has several buttons: START, FORWARDS, BACKWARDS, OPEN ALL DOORS, LOCK ALL DOORS, and STOP. There is also a button enabling the Haunted Woods version of the ride. It does not appear that the control panel has been sabotaged in any way.**

At that point, however, rang a jingle that signaled that Monokuma had an announcement to make.

"Hey, guys! Guess what? It's time for the class trial!" Monokuma said gleefully, still wearing his captain's outfit while holding a cocktail. "Head over to the main deck at once! From there, you'll be taken to the grounds in which the class trial is held!"

The announcement ended.

* * *

_Oh God…_ Masashi thought, sweat running down his brow. _It's coming… It's coming at last…_

There were mixed reactions among the sixteen other students. Some like Sorao and Maiha seemed none too bothered by what was coming up, whereas others like Kumi and Haruka moved about nervously, wishing that this were all a great nightmare.

"Where the hell's that sleazy bear?!" Sayua said, waiting impatiently. "Didn't he tell us earlier to come here?"

"Hey, look!" Sorao pointed at the sea. "I think there's something coming our way!"

At once, the rest of the class faced toward what he was pointing at, and all the confusion they had about the class trial's location disappeared.

What was coming toward them appeared to be a great ship that looked to be about the same size as the one they were on now. Unlike this ship, however, it was all covered in black, as if it represented the darkness that this killing game embodied. When it stopped right by the ship, a gangplank suddenly extended from the black ship's deck and landed on their ship's deck. None were confused as to what this meant, and all the students boarded the black ship at once. The main deck was fully empty, and the only way forward was an elevator awaiting them at the stern.

"Well, then… Shall we go in?" Futaba said, clearly trying to keep as calm a disposition as she could.

One by one, the seventeen students stepped into the elevator, and as soon as they were all inside, the doors shut, and the elevator began to go down. As the elevator fell, so did the tension in the air rise. None said a word and only stood as they awaited their self-called captain. Masashi only shifted his eyes to see what the other Ultimates were like now, and it was as if they were all corpses that remained standing. The only thing that showed that they had life in them was their breathing and small movements that they could not help but make.

Eventually, the elevator stopped, and the doors opened. What awaited them was a great room whose walls all had dark-green wallpaper, the floor being of a brown color instead. Hanging from the roof was a great crystal chandelier, and in the middle was a circle of eighteen metallic stands that appeared able to move. Behind one of the stands was a tall throne with fancy red cushioning.

"Puhuhuhuhu… Welcome to my courtroom!" Monokuma popped out of nowhere as usual and hopped onto the throne. "Isn't this lovely? This is the perfect place to deliver judgment upon the blackened!"

"Judgment… What a ridiculous clown you are," Murphy grumbled.

"Um… I'd really prefer it if you didn't besmirch my occupation like that," Haruka said.

Monokuma then bade them go to their assigned podiums, which bidding the students did with no protest. Once Masashi stepped onto his podium, he nervously eyed the others. Whether they were afraid or calm, all the others had a look of uncertainty as they stared at one another. The only stand not occupied by any of them was instead filled in by a post showing Atsushi's face covered with a red X.

Atsushi Morokuzu, the Ultimate Archaeologist, had ended up as the killing game's first victim. However harsh and prideful he might have been, he had thought in the best interests of the whole group. And as a man who had seemed set on seeking knowledge, he might have had many interesting things to tell Masashi if he had befriended him a bit. But in the end, the peace that had been kept was but a fleeting one, and one of its keepers was now dead. And to top it all off, the killer was one of the students standing in this room.

Masashi looked at each of his peers, wondering which of them had done the deed. Much as he wanted to speak against this great unrighteousness, if he and the other innocents wanted to live, they would have to sacrifice the killer. It was truly a wicked and sickening deed, but that was the only option that they had.

* * *

**And that is that with the investigation! I know it's pretty long, and there's a lot of evidence (not to mention that there are a few clues that aren't listed as Truth Bullets). Hopefully, though, it's not too much to take in! With what I've given you, I think it's possible to determine which of the students is the killer and how exactly the killing was done. Hopefully, I haven't made it too obvious! Anyway, I'd like to hear your thoughts and guesses on this.**

**By the way, here's the trial seating order (going from Masashi's left to his right):**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki**

**2\. Maiha Hanazawa**

**3\. Murphy O'Hagan**

**4\. Abraham Zargari**

**5\. Arashi Seiya**

**6\. ****Takumi Takamitsu**

**7\. ****Sister Hikari Shinto**

**8\. Haruyuki Kanagawa**

**9\. Mari Anzai**

**10\. Futaba Inoshishi**

**11\. Atsushi Morokuzu (DEAD)**

**12\. Faye Nirigiri**

**13\. Sorao Mineta**

**14\. Haruka Minami**

**15\. "Red Mask"**

**16\. Tanjiro Urata**

**17\. Sayua Tomi**

**18\. Hikari Fey**

**Masashi is of course standing opposite to Monokuma's throne, and so the character right in front of the throne is Futaba. ****Every character's position has been knowingly made, so this list is not random.**


	12. The Woodland King Comes (8)

Masashi thought to go over the evidence one last time. He would essentially be fighting a long battle in the courtroom, and he needed to see what his weapons were exactly.

**List of Truth Bullets**

**Monokuma File #1 - The victim is Atsushi Morokuzu, the Ultimate Archaeologist. The body was found in the merry-go-round room around midnight. The victim was killed in the carriage of the spade suit, and the estimated time of death is 11:55 p.m. The victim died from being stabbed multiple times in the chest with a kitchen knife. No other injuries have been found.**

**Glitter on Knife's Haft - ****For some reason, there is pink glitter on the knife's haft. Could it have been left by the culprit?**

**Murphy's Account - ****Murphy was in the shop the whole time tonight. An hour before nighttime, Red Mask came and took the last can of yellow glitter, which caused Monokuma to refresh the stock with cans of pink glitter. Around the beginning of nighttime, Sorao came to take a can of pink glitter. Before the third round began, Sister Hikari came to help Murphy, and right after that, Kumi came and took two cans of pink glitter.**

**Faye's Account - ****Before the third round began, Faye and Futaba headed over to the dining room. While Faye was by herself in the kitchen, Futaba was talking with Haruyuki. If Faye had tried to leave the kitchen, the other two would have spotted her.**

**Bloody Tablecloth - By the body was found a**** tablecloth covered with blood.**

**Atsushi's Note - **"**If you wish to learn the secret of this ship, make sure to ride one of the carriages of the merry-go-round by yourself on the third round. Once you are done, the secret shall be yours. Make sure to tell no one of this message." This note was found in Atsushi's pocket. The handwriting is not distinct enough to tell who the writer is.**

**Two Blood Spots - ****For some reason, there are two blood spots, one by the front wheels, and one by the back wheels. One blood spot appears to be the lower half of the other.**

**Hikari's Account - ****Around the end of the third round, Hikari left her room to take a walk, but saw Sorao dragging rope into his room.**

**Sayua's Account - Neither she nor Tanjiro saw anything out of place during the ride.**

**Red Curtain - There is a red curtain covering the whole window in the servants' quarters. Atsushi had Faye set it up a few days ago.**

**Vending Machine - ****There is a vending machine in the second deck's port hallway. It sells many kinds of drinks such as water and soda pop. There is also a trash can nearby. During the investigation, Arashi told Masashi to get him a drink from the machine.**

**Arashi's Account - Arashi claims to have been in the servants' quarters the whole time.**

**Maiha's Activities - Maiha suddenly visited the merry-go-round room, supposedly only to check the AR headsets. She happened to check the headset in the spade carriage. Later on, she left the dining room sometime during the third round, claiming to go to the restroom.**

**Haruka's Account - Futaba and Haruyuki saw Haruka go into the port hallway. She was apparently searching for something in the storeroom. At no point did the two see her come back into the dining room until the body discovery announcement played.**

**Sorao's Account - ****Sorao went to the men's restroom on the second deck and then headed over to the hallway in the third deck. In that short interval, he was alone. ****Afterwards, he passed by Kumi in the hallway. Sorao claims that because Kumi saw him only when he headed back down to the fourth deck, he could not have gone into the merry-go-round room. Sorao stayed in his room afterwards.**

**Fourth Deck Denizens' Accounts - Abraham, Hikari, and Red Mask apparently stayed in their rooms after nighttime began, though Hikari did leave her room around the end of the third round.**

**Merry-Go-Round Doorknob - The knob of the door to the merry-go-round room does not have a single trace of glitter.**

**Kumi's Glitter - ****Kumi had Haruka put a can's worth of pink glitter on his palms as part of his hunt for the so-called Woodland King. Apparently, it is a good luck charm, and Arashi suggested that he use the glitter. ****Kumi had two cans of pink glitter, which he had Haruka put in his satchel afterwards. He claims to have used only one, and yet both cans are empty now. ****The glitter seems to be easily removable with water.**

**Kumi's Account - Kumi was outside the merry-go-round door by himself the whole time. The only person he saw after Haruka and Arashi had left was Sorao when he headed down to his room.**

**Kumi's Note - A note of all the details of the ride that Haruka told Kumi. After the first round, Haruka told Kumi and Arashi details of the ride. Apparently, Maiha was in earshot.**

**Carriage Suits - Each of the four carriages has a distinct suit on the outside.**

**Normal Portion - During the normal part of the AR ride, all the windows are up, so no one can see through them from either side. Lots of frightening AR creatures emerge as well. Loud music is played throughout.**

**Spinning Carriages Portion - All the carriages spin at this part, and all the riders' sight is covered with AR bugs. ****The music's instruments also change to drums.**

**Yellow Mushrooms - ****Both yellow mushrooms are part of opening the hidden doors. The yellow mushroom in the playroom has pink glitter on it, unlike the other one.**

**Hidden Doors - The hidden door remains open for about a minute. From the side of the hidden room, it cannot be opened without pressing the red button. The hidden doors are in the merry-go-round room and the playroom.**

**Control Panel - The control panel has several buttons: START, FORWARDS, BACKWARDS, OPEN ALL DOORS, LOCK ALL DOORS, and STOP. There is also a button enabling the Haunted Woods version of the ride. It does not appear that the control panel has been sabotaged in any way.**

* * *

"Let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial!" Monokuma began, sitting on his throne. "During the class trial, you are to present your arguments for who you think the killer is, and in the end, you will vote for 'whodunnit'. If you vote correctly, only the blackened will be punished. But if you vote incorrectly… only the blackened will live, and that person will be free to leave the amusement park!"

"Sounds simple enough," Sorao said, hands in his pockets. "But you know, I can't say I like this brand of justice that this killing game delivers. I mean, even in the outside world, manslaughter is deemed differently from murder."

"Not as if we were in any position to complain about injustice," Mari said.

"Indeed. We must accept that all killings are equal in our honorable judge's eyes," Haruyuki added.

"But in this case, it sure does look like murder, doesn't it?" Faye said. "I mean, I don't think Atsushi's death was a simple, straightforward, and onefold accident!"

"Hey, Captain Monokuma, just to be sure…" Masashi said. "Was Atsushi truly killed by one of us?"

Monokuma chortled. "Of course! And the killer stands right in this courtroom!"

"How awful… I still can't believe one of us would kill someone," Sister Hikari said.

"Well, you'd better, because if you don't, you'll end up becoming goddamn sharkbait," Abraham said. "The only way to live is to find the killer."

"I'm sure that if we use our heads, we'll find the evil warlock and punish him! Right, Sir Teddybane?" Kumi said to his teddy bear in shining armor, which he had set on his podium as if it were his private desk.

"Enough of this pointless chatter already," Futaba said. "We should start discussing this case if we wish to end this sordid affair."

"All right, then…" Masashi said. "What should we talk about first?"

"Well, I suggest that we talk about what happened during the ride," Maiha said, one hand casually set on her hip. "It's the most obvious thing to talk about, yes?"

"Yeah, that sounds right," Sorao said. "If we nail down what the killer's movements were, maybe we'll find a clue or something."

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"First of all, it was only you five that got on the ride during the third round," Sorao began.

"That's right," Tanjiro said. "Sayua and I were in the diamond carriage, and Mari and Masashi were in the heart carriage."

"**Atsushi was alone in the spade carriage, then,**" Haruyuki said.

"And during the ride, all the doors were locked, right?" Sister Hikari said.

"There is a control panel that lets you open the doors," Futaba said. "The killer could have simply pressed **the button meant to open Atsushi's carriage only**."

"Then the killer could've gone in and done the deed," Abraham said with a look of disgust.

"Exactly. There is no problem in my theory," Futaba said.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Control Panel**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Wait, I think you've got one thing wrong!" Masashi said.

Futaba raised her eyes. "What? Wrong? What is wrong with what I have said?"

"You say that the killer got into his carriage by simply pressing the button for it," Masashi explained. "But there's a problem: that button doesn't exist."

"It doesn't?" Hikari asked. "B-But how else would you get the doors to open?"

"Well, uh, I didn't mean it that way. You see, if you look at the control panel of the merry-go-round," Masashi continued, "you'll see a bunch of buttons. There's only one button for opening the doors, however."

"Ah, yes, I think it's called 'OPEN ALL DOORS'," Mari answered.

"Wait… Then there's no button for opening only a certain carriage's doors?" Red Mask asked.

Masashi shook his head. "No, if someone wants to open only one carriage's doors, then there's nothing that can be done about that."

"But what's the problem?" Futaba asked, unfazed. "All you have clarified is that all the doors opened once the killer pressed the button. The killer could have still gone into Atsushi's carriage and killed him."

"Yeah… What does that change, really?" Sorao asked.

"A bit, actually," Masashi said back. "During the ride, all the doors are meant to be closed, obviously. If they'd been opened, we who were on board would have noticed such an obvious change. And according to Sayua, neither she nor Tanjiro saw anything out of place during the ride."

"Yeah, I didn't see any doors opening!" Sayua said, her arms akimbo.

"Nor did I," Tanjiro sheepishly added.

"Then… the button couldn't have been pressed!" Faye said, flabbergasted. "Otherwise, you would've noticed it!"

"Well, if that is true, then where does this leave us?" It was Haruyuki, who looked none too shocked by this conclusion.

"Huh?" Red Mask said. "What are you talking about?"

"What I mean is that if the killer could not go into Atsushi's carriage without being noticed," Haruyuki answered, "then it follows that the killer must have used some other way to kill him."

"Yeah… What other options are there?" Sister Hikari said.

"Ooh, ooh! I have an idea!" This time, it was Kumi, who was waving his hand as if begging for attention.

"What is it?" Haruka asked.

Kumi widened his smile. "Well, if the evil warlock couldn't get into the carriage, then he must've snuck one of his magic minions in there beforehand. Then the minion simply killed Sir Atsushi with the knife, and the minion, as part of the Laws of Summoning, disappeared before the ride ended! It's the perfect crime, I tell you!"

"_That_… is quite an explanation," Sorao said, he and many others looking utterly dumbfounded.

"More like rank bullshit," Abraham said, not sharing the inclination to be gentle with the storyteller. "Those are ten seconds of my life I'll never fucking get back. Next time, don't fucking say anything."

"Yeah, keep the dumb make-believe in your head, will you?" Sayua added.

"Wh-What…?" Kumi shrank back with a dreary expression as he hugged his teddy bear as if falling back on it for support. It saddened Masashi to see Kumi shunned so, but in the end, he went along with the others' sentiment to dismiss him. This was a class trial on which their lives hinged, not a playground in which to brainstorm silly ideas.

"Everyone, please, let us get back to the topic at hand," Futaba ordered, no one complaining. "Now, does anyone have any theories on how Atsushi was killed?"

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"For one, are we so sure that the doors never opened?" Haruyuki said. "Perhaps the ones on board simply overlooked it."

"Overlooked it? Like hell I did!" Sayua said. "Everything I saw that round was **pretty much the same as the previous two!**"

"Yeah… we didn't see or hear anything weird," Tanjiro said. "At least, that's what I remember."

"Maybe it was **too dark for you to see anything?**" Red Mask said.

"Or maybe there was **a moment when your whole sight was fully covered**," Abraham suggested.

"Oh, oh, I know!" Kumi said delightfully. "Maybe the killer… **cast a spell of blindness on you guys!**"

"Hey, buddy! You should cast a spell of silence on yourself!" Sayua said, looking more and more annoyed with Kumi's useless suggestions.

"Um… But I don't know how to cast any magic spells!" Kumi said innocently.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Spinning Portion**

**I agree with that!**

"I agree, Abraham. There was a part when none of us could see anything," Masashi said.

"Huh? There was?" Sayua said.

"Yeah. Remember the part when the carriages were all spinning?" Masashi answered. "There was a particular part where none of us could see anything."

"What are you… Oh!" Futaba gasped. "Are you referring to that part wherein those dreadful bugs were all over us?"

"Oh, yeah… There was that part!" Sayua said, shocked. "It had that annoying drum music, didn't it?"

"Huh… I wonder why I didn't remember that," Tanjiro said.

"Well, you'd have noticed anything out of the ordinary during that ride," Mari suggested. "So since that part worked as it should, you didn't pay as much attention to that and so simply forgot about it."

"No problem, though, since someone at least remembers," Sorao remarked, smiling.

"How long was that part, anyway?" Faye asked. "If you ask me, it took forever for those bugs to go away! It was a really horrendous, dreadful, and frightful sight!"

"I think it was about half a minute," Sorao answered. "Certainly long enough for the killer to open the doors, go to Atsushi's carriage, and kill him."

"But even if they couldn't see the doors open," Abraham said, "surely the doors must have made some noise when opening."

"Yeah, why didn't they hear anything?" Red Mask said.

_Ah… That's it!_ Masashi thought.

"Throughout the whole ride, there was loud music playing," he explained. "Even when the music changed for the spinning portion, the loudness didn't change."

"Yeah, I could hardly hear anything else but that music," Tanjiro said. "I guess that's also why we couldn't hear Atsushi cry out in pain."

"It's almost as if that particular section had been designed to be exploited…" Mari remarked as she glanced toward the judge.

"Hey, now, it was an innocent ride and nothing more! Don't you think of calling it a murder machine or anything!" Monokuma said as if he were truly angry. "But, you know, I sure do love it when people use my gifts in ways I hadn't imagined! Creativity and innovation are always to be commended!"

"Anyway, I think we can all agree," Masashi said, "that the killer used that short period to open all the carriages' doors—"

"_**Hold it right there**__**, foolish commoner.**_"

It was none other than Maiha, who, unlike her peers, looked not at all in agreement with his claim.

"Wh-What the?" Masashi said. "Maiha? What is it?"

"I must admit, your claim sounds rather convincing," Maiha said. "You certainly know how to make anything look good for your fellow commoners. But as someone of higher station, I shall show that your claim is but a great sham!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: Maiha Hanazawa**

"You say that the killer pressed the button while the riders' sight was covered with bugs," Maiha began.

"It does sound rather convincing at first.

"But in your theory, the killer would have had to go into the carriage.

"During that time, all the carriages were spinning!

"It would have been rather difficult for the killer to make their way to Atsushi's carriage!"

"I admit, it'd be a bit hard for the killer to go to the carriage," Masashi countered. "But it's certainly not impossible, and it's the only time when we couldn't see anything!"

"Why must you insist that the killer must have killed him in that timespan?" Maiha said, irked.

"It is likelier that the killer used another method to kill Atsushi.

"Perhaps the killer used a method to kill him without actually going in.

"Then the time would be of no consequence.

"We should be talking about that instead of wasting time with your claim.

"There's **no proof that the murder happened while the carriages spun!**"

"So let us put an end to this groundless line of logic!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Two Blood Spots**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"Wait, hold on, Maiha!" Masashi said. "I think there _is_ proof the carriages were spinning while Atsushi was stabbed!"

Maiha leered at him with skepticism. "Hmm? Whatever could prove such a thing?"

"Well, during the investigation, something rather peculiar was found," Masashi explained. "There were two tiny blood spots. One was by the front wheels, and the other by the back wheels. But here's the thing: they have a rather odd shape. It's as if the two had originally been one blood spot."

"Wait a minute… are you saying it was like that," Tanjiro said, "because the carriages were spinning?"

"Huh? I don't get it!" Kumi said, hugging Sir Teddybane, his teddy bear.

"N-Neither do I!" Arashi added, fists pumped.

"Ah… I think I get what Masashi's saying," Sorao answered. "When we say that the carriages spun, we're not saying that the carriages themselves spun. Instead, the parts of the platform that they were on did."

"Oh!" Maiha gasped. "Then… the blood spots…"

"Yes, I think that at some point in the killing, some of the blood splashed away and landed on the rim of the spinning platform," Masashi explained. "Because it was on the rim, one half of the spot was on the spinning part, while the other half stayed on the non-spinning part."

"And when the carriages stopped spinning," Mari said, "the two halves of the blood spot did not line up as they had when the spot had been made."

"So it looked as if two separate blood spots had been made instead," Haruyuki finished. "It certainly explains their odd shape."

"And I don't think the blood spot could have been made if the doors had been shut," Masashi said. "So I think it's clear now that the killer opened the doors at that point in the ride!"

Maiha clenched her teeth as her countenance grew graver. "I… I see. So the commoner was right all along. Well, I suppose that a broken clock is right twice a day."

As more and more murmured in agreement with the claim, Masashi felt a great sense of relief going through his mind. Though it was intense, and the stakes could not be any higher, the class trial certainly gave him a feeling of satisfaction as he and his peers slowly uncovered the tricks and gimmicks that the killer among them had used. Hopefully, it would not be long until they reached the end of these dreadful proceedings.

"You know, there's something bothering me about this."

It was Sorao, who appeared to be deep in thought about something.

"What is it?" Masashi asked.

"Well, it's just that… if some blood managed to splatter all the way to the rim," Sorao said, "then shouldn't a lot of blood have splattered onto the culprit as well?"

"Yeah… killing someone isn't a clean business," Haruka said. "If you really want a clean business, you're better off working in the office or not killing anyone, really!"

_Could the killer have used anything to block off the blood?_ Masashi thought and recalled the evidence before realizing the answer. _Ah, yes, of course!_

"I'm pretty sure the killer used the bloody tablecloth, which we found in the carriage," Masashi answered. "Almost all of it was covered in blood."

"Ugh… What a horrible sight that must be!" Futaba said.

"Well, if a tablecloth was used," Maiha said, "then it means that someone must have taken it from the kitchen."

"But anyone could have taken the tablecloth," Faye pointed out. "And the kitchen's open at nighttime, so I don't think there are any witnesses for this."

"Still… I don't think the killer was carrying the tablecloth with them the whole time," Mari said. "Not only would it be rather inefficient, but it would also make the killer look pretty suspicious if anyone were to see them."

"Then the tablecloth must've been hidden somewhere!" Arashi said. "But where?"

_Which place would be the best for the killer to hide the tablecloth in?_ Masashi thought. _Well, only one place comes into mind._

"I believe the killer hid it in the hidden room," Masashi answered. "If the killer had put it in any other room, the killer would have had the risk of someone finding it. And not to mention that the hidden room is right beside the merry-go-round room."

"I see… It would be rather convenient for the killer," Haruyuki said. "After all, none of us except Mari and Masashi knew about the hidden room. The killer almost certainly assumed that only they knew about it and so decided to exploit its hiddenness."

"Man, in hindsight, keeping the hidden room a secret from us was a terrible idea," Sorao remarked.

"Wh-What are you looking at me for?" Futaba said as soon as the others gazed at her. "How was I to know that one of us would use it for murder?"

"Anyway, if the killer had put the tablecloth in the hidden room in advance," Mari said, "doesn't that mean that this killing was planned in advance?"

"If that's true, then it means that the killer knew about the specifics of the AR ride, right?" Haruka asked. "Maybe Monokuma told the killer!"

Monokuma giggled. "Well, you're slightly off the mark! As a matter of fact, the blackened did ask me about the ride last night, but the only thing I told the killer was that everyone would ride in the carriages as part of the AR ride."

"Wait, what?!" Masashi said. "You mean, any one of us could've just _asked_ you about the ride?"

"Why didn't you tell us earlier that we could simply ask you for the details?" Mari asked.

"Well, you didn't _ask!_" Monokuma answered. "There's no rule that says that none of you may ask me anything about it! Of course, whatever I tell you is at my discretion, so don't worry! That's the only detail I told the blackened! I kept everything else a secret!"

"But is that not unfair?" Futaba asked. "After all, giving the killer such information undoubtedly assisted them, and as part of the rules, it is a breach in Rule #10!"

Rule #10 said that Captain Monokuma might not participate in a killing. If Monokuma had indeed told the killer, then he must have broken his own rule. Did this mean that this killing must be deemed invalid?

Monokuma chuckled. "It's good that you're paying attention to the rules! But no, it's not a breach. After all, _any_ of you could have asked me, and it might've not been for murder. Why, maybe one of you asked me for safety concerns and whatnot!"

"Yeah... I don't want to side with him," Sorao said, "but there's no denying it: giving the killer information doesn't count as participating in it. It's not necessarily the case that asking Monokuma for information means that the one asking plans to use it to kill someone."

Masashi groaned. He should have figured that Monokuma would be sly about that, but more importantly, the killer had thought to ask him, and thanks to that, the killer must have been able to come up with a way to kill Atsushi.

Arashi scratched his head. "But even with that detail, I don't think the killer could've planned the killing!"

"Not necessarily. They might have figured out a way to exploit that fact as well as the structure of the rooms," Mari said, "but they thought to find out later how to complete their plan when they could learn of the specifics of the ride."

"So the killer didn't know beforehand that there was a certain part of the ride where no one wearing the AR headsets saw anything, right?" Sister Hikari asked.

"It appears so," Haruyuki answered. "But that raises the question… the killer must have found out eventually and finished their plan, so who knew of it in the end?"

"I suppose that we must clear that up before we proceed," Futaba said.

"Well, I'm glad we've cleared up exactly how the killer accessed Atsushi's carriage!" Sorao said. "So let's narrow down who our killer may be."

_Wait… have we really figured out everything about that?_ Masashi thought. For some reason, he felt as if they had actually glossed over something, but nothing came into mind.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"It's important to keep in mind," Mari said, "that the killer knew about the spinning part of the ride."

"So who knew about it?" Sorao asked.

"Obviously, the ones who had ridden it," Abraham answered. "**I certainly knew nothing about it.**"

"**Neither did I!**" Red Mask added.

"Well, I've ridden the merry-go-round before," Murphy said, "but the carriages certainly didn't spin then."

"The spinning carriages are **a feature unique to the AR ride**, of course," Tanjiro said.

"Then we can conclude that those who had never ridden the AR ride," Maiha said, "could not have done it."

"Yes, **none of the riders told anyone else about it**," Haruyuki said. "Then it seems that our list of suspects contains only the riders."

"As it should," Maiha added.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Kumi's Note**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Hold on, Haruyuki. That's not exactly true," Masashi said. "One of us in fact told someone else the details. Isn't that right, Haruka?"

"Oh, right, I did!" Haruka answered. "I believe I told Kumi and Arashi!"

"You did?" Sorao said as many of the others now eyed the two boys.

Arashi frowned. "Wh-Why are you looking at me like that?! Even if I knew about it, it doesn't mean anything!"

"Y-Yeah! I-I did write a note with all the details, but I only wanted to know what happened!" Kumi said.

"Oh, I beg to differ," Futaba said. "If you knew were told about how the ride works, then obviously, you could have exploited it. You knew that the carriages spun, so it's perfectly possible that one of you is the killer."

"Was anyone else there with you when you told Kumi and Arashi?" Sister Hikari asked.

Haruka glanced elsewhere as she set a finger on her chin contemplatively. "We were in the dining room at the time, and I'm pretty sure Maiha was the only other person there."

"Wh-What?" Maiha said, looking a bit shocked and irked.

"Wait, what about you, Haruyuki?" Masashi asked. "I thought you were in the dining room at the time."

"Oh, I suppose I must mention this," Haruyuki answered calmly. "Once a few of you came to the dining room after the end of the first round, I headed into the kitchen. I wanted to drink some tea, and I had to spend about ten minutes on thinking about it."

"That much time on tea?" Murphy said.

"You really ought not to be shocked that I prefer to think hard about it. Tea is a swell drink, after all," Haruyuki retorted. "Anyway, it's clear that I had no idea about the ride. And even if I had overheard it, it would be clear that I'm innocent, as I have an alibi."

"Yes, during the third round, I was discussing with you a few matters," Futaba said. "Thus, you and I are definitely innocent."

"But, you know, the same can't be the other fine lady here," Sorao said, grinning. "Didn't you say you had to go to the restroom, Maiha?"

"What are you insinuating?" Maiha said, leering at the celesta player.

"Hey, don't get angry at me. I'm just saying that you could've known about the spinning carriages," Sorao said. "Combined with how you were conveniently alone during the murder, doesn't that make you look a tad bit suspicious?"

"If she's the killer, it certainly explains her outburst from earlier," Murphy said. "She was all insistent that the killer could've killed Atsushi some other way."

Haruyuki chuckled in his usual creepy manner. "I suspect she wanted to suggest that the killer had set up some kind of complicated contraption. That way, the killer would've killed him without actually going into the room, and our alibis would mean nothing."

Futaba pondered. "Hmm… Now that you mention it, it would certainly make sense for her to make that argument. After all, unlike me, she has no alibi!"

"Th-That makes a lot of sense…" Hikari said.

"Indeed. I find that too damn suspicious to ignore," Abraham said.

"But wasn't Kumi at the front door the whole time?" Sister Hikari asked. "Then how could Maiha have gone into the room?"

"Exactly. I am innocent, and you ought to apologize to me at once," Maiha said.

"What about the hidden room?" Red Mask suggested. "I mean, maybe she got in there somehow!"

"But... isn't the hidden room connected only to the merry-go-round room?" Sister Hikari said.

"I'm afraid you've misunderstood something, Sister Hikari," Masashi said. "The hidden room's actually part of a passageway that connects the merry-go-round room and the playroom on the same deck."

"I-It is?" Sister Hikari raised her hands in surprise. "I-I didn't go check it out, but I simply assumed that it was only connected to the merry-go-round room."

"Moreover, the killer didn't need to go through the front entrance!" Faye said, raising a finger. "The killer could've simply gone through the hidden door!"

"Wait, but did Maiha know about the hidden door?" Mari asked.

Maiha crossed her arms, looking at the rest of them arrogantly. "There's no way for me to prove that I didn't know, now, is there? If you assume that I knew about it, then you must apply the same standard to everyone else, yes?"

"And besides, wasn't it Mari that showed us all the hidden door?" Tanjiro pointed out.

"I did know about it, yes," Mari answered, "but so did Atsushi and Futaba. And as far as I know, the only other person who knows is Masashi."

"Whoa, hang on a minute," Sorao said, showing a little surprise. "Masashi knew about it as well?"

"Um… I stumbled upon it by chance a while ago," Masashi explained a bit sheepishly. "It wasn't particularly hard to uncover. And I'm pretty sure that the fact I knew about it was mentioned earlier."

"Oh... Well, I must've forgotten about that," Sorao said. "Sorry. My bad."

"Anyway, if it was easy for you, then surely it was easy for the killer to find as well," Haruyuki said. "The only fair assumption we should make is that any one of us could've known about the hidden door."

"But still, the only thing that changes is that the killer had no need for the front door," Faye pointed out. "That doesn't change the fact that Maiha could've killed Atsushi."

Maiha let out a short contemptuous laugh. "You still insist that I am the killer? Well, for your information, foolish pastry maker, I assert that I was in the restroom during the murder! And besides, surely I'm not the only one without an alibi!"

"Well, I don't want to say it, but…" Haruka said, nervously twiddling her fingers. "Arashi and Kumi were also alone, weren't they?"

The group now looked at the three main suspects of the case: Maiha, the haughty, wealthy ballroom dancer; Arashi, the erratically emotional pyrotechnician; and Kumi, the odd childish storyteller. They were the only ones without an alibi.

"H-Hey! Don't you go accusing me! I never went to the crime scene! Honest!" Arashi yelled, raising a fist.

"I-I was outside the whole time!" Kumi said, hugging his teddy bear and looking at his peers with puppy dog eyes. "I-I swear, in the Elven Queen's name, I'm telling the truth!"

"You commoners who think to accuse me are nothing but imbeciles!" Maiha said. "It must've been one of the other two, obviously!"

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"I was in the restroom for most of the third round," Maiha said. "I left about a minute or so before the announcement played. **And that is of course the truth.**"

"And I was in the servants' quarters!" Arashi said. "**I-I wasn't doing anything!**"

"You weren't doing anything?" Abraham asked. "Were you lazing around?"

"Well… yeah! I wasn't, uh, looking for fairies or anything!" Arashi answered, face reddening. "**And I never went to the merry-go-round room!**"

"A-And **I was in front of the merry-go-round door the whole time!**" Kumi insisted.

"Were you, really?" Sorao said.

"I-I was! I'm not hiding anything!" Kumi said. "There's **n****othing in the crime scene** that connects me to Sir Atsushi's death!"

"**Same for me!**" Arashi said.

"**And for me as well,**" Maiha said. "Such an accusation is utterly groundless."

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Glitter on Knife's Haft**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Wait, hold on!" Masashi said. "That's not exactly true, Kumi."

"Wh-What? What do you mean, Sir Masashi?" Kumi asked, bewildered. "S-Sir Atsushi's death has nothing to do with me!"

"Sorry, Kumi, but that's not exactly true," Masashi replied. "During the investigation, we found something a bit peculiar on the haft of the murder weapon. It was pink glitter."

"_Pink glitter?!_" Arashi exclaimed.

"But why was it there?" Haruka asked. "I mean, if I were to kill someone, there'd be no reason to use glitter! Not that I'd kill anyone, of course!"

"That's the part I'm not sure about," Masashi said. "Regardless, since the haft had glitter on it, we can surmise the killer had put glitter on their hands."

"But if that's true, shouldn't there be glitter on the control panel's buttons?" Futaba asked. "I believe it has been established that the killer had to press the button to open Atsushi's carriage."

"If the whole hand had been covered, that'd be right," Mari answered. "But if the killer simply covered the palms, then there should be no glitter on the fingers. So even if there's no glitter on any buttons, it doesn't mean the killer didn't press them."

"And moreover, Kumi got glitter from the shop tonight. Isn't that a bit too much of a coincidence to anyone else?" Sorao said.

"But couldn't any of us have gone the glitter?" Sister Hikari asked.

"It's certainly possible. I hadn't kept an eye on the shop until tonight," Murphy answered. "But I know for sure that boy had his hands on the glitter."

"So, uh, why the fuck did he even have glitter in the first place?" Sayua asked. "What was the use of that?!"

"I-It's meant to be a good luck charm!" Kumi answered a bit more enthusiastically. "I was looking for the Woodland King, and—"

"All right, all right, that's enough out of you," Sorao said coolly yet dismissively. "What's more important is that Kumi had glitter on his person. It's very much possible that he was the one who held the knife, right?"

"Wait, don't tell me you're actually accusing him!" Faye said. "I mean, I don't think Kumi has it in him to kill someone!"

"Don't be so naive. Perhaps the boy's got more to hide than we may think," Murphy said.

"And besides, it will not hurt to explore this possibility, yes?" Haruyuki said. "There is no time limit, is there, Captain Monokuma?"

"For your information, it's up to me to decide when this class trial ends!" Monokuma answered. "Why, I could have it end in a year's time!"

Sayua raised her right hand, outraged. "Oh, hell no! There's no way I'm gonna stay here that long!"

Futaba sighed, rolling her eyes. "Let us start the discussion already. The sooner we sort everything out, the sooner we shall be done with all this."

"Um… What's going on?" Kumi asked shyly as he looked around and met his classmates' wary gazes. "A-Am I being accused?"

"I'm sorry to say it," Masashi answered, "but yes, you are."

Kumi gasped, his blinking speeding up a bit. "B-But why? Why don't you trust me?"

"We don't really have any other leads to go on," Masashi answered as softly as he could. "But don't worry! If you're innocent, we'll prove it in the end, right?"

"Oh… I-I see..." Kumi answered. Though he did not protest, the saddened expression on his face clearly betokened how shocked he was that he was now the focus of the case.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"Kumi was **outside the room by himself**, wasn't he?" Sorao asked.

"I don't really want to say it, but…" Haruka continued. "There really wasn't anything stopping him from going inside."

"Yeah, **the door wasn't locked or anything,**" Tanjiro said.

"The merry-go-round was a stone's throw away," Murphy said, "so I'd think he went through the simplest way."

"So **he entered through the front entrance** and then did what he had to do!" Sayua said. "Sounds pretty simple to me!"

"Then the foolish commoner must be the killer!" Maiha said, giving him the evil eye.

"N-No! I was outside the whole time, I swear!" Kumi said.

"Too bad you've got no one else to back up your fucking alibi, yes?" Abraham said.

"I-It sounds all clear to me..." Hikari said.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Merry-Go-Round Doorknob**

**No, that's wrong!**

"No, I don't think he went through the front door," Masashi said.

"Huh?" Sayua looked askance at him. "Are you saying he didn't know how to open a door? I mean, yeah, he's an idiot, but come on!"

_Did you really have to add the last part in there?_ Masashi thought.

"No, that's not what I mean. At that time, Kumi's palms were covered with a lot of glitter as part of his fairy hunting," Masashi explained. "If he'd touched the doorknob, the glitter would've gotten on it."

"But how do you know that for certain?" Maiha asked.

"During the investigation, I took Kumi to the restroom," Masashi answered. "And when Kumi touched the restroom knob, it got covered with his glitter."

"Oh! So the same thing would've happened with the merry-go-round doorknob!" Faye said.

"But couldn't he have just wiped the damn thing?" Sayua asked.

"Oh, no, he could not have." This time, it was Haruyuki of all people. "I myself inspected the doorknob during my investigation. I saw no signs that it has been wiped, as it is still rather dirty."

"Well, if that's the case, I don't think Kumi went through the front door, then," Tanjiro said.

"Exactly," Masashi said. "So Kumi—"

"Now hold on a minute!"

To Masashi's surprise, it was Sorao, who carried his usual friendly smile as he raised his hands casually.

"Kumi, you said that you had put glitter on your hands," Sorao began. "How much glitter did you put on, exactly?"

"Um… a can's worth," Kumi answered meekly, slightly shocked that he was not out of the woods yet. "Wh-Why do you ask?"

"How many cans did you get from the shop?"

"Um... two."

Sorao widened his smile. "Ah… I see. So that's the trick you pulled off."

Faye scratched her head. "What are you talking about? What trick?"

"You see, Kumi had you dismiss him as a suspect with the glitter. After all, it seems impossible that he went through the front door," Sorao explained. "But what if he simply went through the other entrance?"

"The… other entrance?" Haruka said.

Sorao sighed. "Have you forgotten already? The hidden room is connected to both the merry-go-round room and the playroom. Even if he couldn't go through the front entrance, he was alone at the time, so he could've gone to the playroom, right? And at the time, he most likely didn't expect anyone to find the hidden room, so that's why he thought he could deceive you like that."

"B-But I never went there!" Kumi said. "I-I was in the hallway outside the merry-go-round the whole time!"

"Unless you have anyone to back you up, what you say may as well be a lie," Maiha said.

"And in fact, there's evidence that shows someone used that entrance," Sorao said. "Right, Masashi?"

Masashi thought for a moment and recalled what he had seen in the playroom.

"Yeah, the yellow mushroom there had glitter," he answered. "It shows that the hidden room was opened there."

"Wait, I know it's unlikely," Sister Hikari said, "but couldn't the glitter have been left there sometime ago?"

Luckily, he could answer her with certainty, so Masashi shook his head. "No, I don't think so. Earlier tonight, I met Tanjiro there. We can ask him whether he saw anything."

"Well, Tanjiro?" Mari asked. "Did you see any glitter on the yellow mushroom?"

Tanjiro pondered for a moment. "No, I'm pretty sure I didn't see any glitter at all. And I was looking around to kill some time."

"And no one else has admitted to having gone to the playroom," Haruka added, glancing elsewhere while thinking.

"Then it's clear that the glitter got onto the mushroom when Kumi opened the hidden door there," Sorao said.

"If that's true," Masashi said, "then Kumi could've gone through the hidden room—"

"_**Don't be so hasty now!**_"

Someone had interrupted him again, and this time, it was Faye.

"You say that Kumi accessed the hidden room from that side," she said, raising a finger. "But I don't think he did!"

"What? Why?" Masashi said, tilting his head a bit.

"It's impossible, that's why!" she answered.

"But… the yellow mushroom—"

"I won't let a mushroom get the best of me in an argument of wits!" Faye said. "Right after I'm done, I'll show you why this theory is groundless, unsound, and half-baked!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: Faye Nirigiri**

"There's no way that Kumi could have gone through the passageway!" Faye argued.

"Sure, he may have gone through the hidden door in the playroom…

"But think about what'd have happened after he'd gone into the other room!

"He'd be stuck there, but **Murphy and Sister Hikari found him outside!**"

"So he must've been outside! That's the only conclusion!"

"No, he didn't have to stay in the room!" Masashi countered. "Remember there's a hidden door in the merry-go-round room."

"I knew you'd say that!" Faye said.

"But you should have taken a closer look at the crime scene!

"The yellow mushroom in the merry-go-round room **didn't have any glitter on it.**

"That means Kumi didn't touch it, and he couldn't have opened the hidden door!

"And so there would have been no way for him to escape!

"**The door must've been already closed, of course!**"

**Truth Bullet Chosen: Hidden Doors**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"Faye, I understand your reasoning," Masashi began, "but I'm afraid you've gotten one thing very wrong!"

"W-Wrong?!" Faye said, frowning. "I don't see how!"

"You assume that once the hidden door was opened, it would close in no time," Masashi said. "But that's not true. Once it's opened, it stays so for about a minute."

"Aah!" Faye exclaimed, her frown widening. This was the first time that Masashi had seen such an expression from her; it seemed that she was not receptive to having her theories and assertions shot down.

"Then… it is very much possible that he utilized the hidden passageway!" Futaba said, raising a hand in surprise.

"Indeed. He could have gone into the room and killed Atsushi while the hidden door stayed open," Haruyuki said.

"But… But I…" Kumi whimpered. The more his expression worsened, the sorrier Masashi felt for him, but he needed to see this line of logic through. If it were right, then he was the culprit, but if it were wrong, then a contradiction should pop up somewhere. Either way, now was not the time to be lax on him just because of his childish nature.

Tanjiro cocked his head slightly. "If that's true, then to do so, he must've done everything in a minute. Otherwise, the hidden door would have closed, and he'd have had to touch the mushroom in that room to open it again."

"Oh, that's definitely doable!" Red Mask said delightfully. "I've done much harder tasks in half that time!"

"Um, I'd prefer that you not talk about your phantom-thieving," Sister Hikari said uneasily.

Sorao chuckled. "I'm pretty sure our storyteller here is athletic enough to pull off such a task. Anyway, let's get back—"

"Wait, I have something to ask."

This time, it was Haruyuki, who seemed rather unperturbed about this whole thing.

"You claim that Kumi simply opened the hidden door," Haruyuki said. "But is that actually the case?"

"What do you mean?" Masashi asked. "If it's about how he opens it, all he has to do is press the red button near the door."

Haruyuki shook his head. "No, I have something else in mind. But first, I must ask you a question: is one able to peek through the hidden door?"

"The hidden door? No, try as I might, I couldn't even budge it with sheer force," Masashi answered. "I had to press the button instead."

"Ah, therein lies the problem," Haruyuki said. "Let me explain."

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"If the hidden door cannot be budged even slightly," Haruyuki began, "then it means that **Kumi could not see what was on the other side**, yes?"

"Yes, that seems right," Mari said.

"But it means that Kumi could not tell _when_ to open the door," Haruyuki pointed out. "He could not see whether the carriages had begun to spin yet."

"Oh yeah! Th-That's right!" Arashi said.

"And there is **no way he could have known that**," Haruyuki said. "Is that not right?"

"Well, I did tell Kumi a bunch of details about the ride," Haruka said, "but I don't think I told him _when_ exactly the carriages started spinning, after all. After all, I have enough trouble keeping track of time already!"

**"Thus, he could not have simply relied on a watch,**" Haruyuki said.

"Since that mushroom has no glitter on it," Murphy said, "we know that the killer did not need to open the hidden door again."

"And if he had opened it too late, then **we would have noticed the open doors of the carriages**," Mari said.

"Like we said, we didn't see anything out of place!" Sayua said.

**Truth Bullet (Refute): Spinning Portion**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Haruyuki, I'm afraid you're wrong," Masashi said. "There was a way for Kumi to tell whether it was the right time to open the door."

The art critic raised his brow. "Oh? Pray tell, what is it?"

"You're right that the door prevented him from seeing what was on the other side," Masashi explained. "But just because he couldn't use his sight, it doesn't mean he couldn't use his hearing."

"Herring? Why did Kumi have a fish on him all of a sudden?!" Haruka asked, putting on a bright smile.

"No, no, 'hearing', not 'herring'!" Futaba said, showing an irked expression, though it was rather obvious that Haruka had merely made a joke.

"Anyway, during the ride, there was something special going on with the music," Masashi continued. "During the normal parts of the ride, the music played a set of orchestral instruments. But when it reached the spinning part, the music suddenly changed to feature only drums."

"Oh, so he could have relied on the change of music as his signal!" Sister Hikari said.

"That certainly makes a lot of sense," Abraham remarked.

"Wait a minute, are you sure that Kumi could have heard it?" Faye asked. "What if the room is soundproof?"

"No, there's no need to worry about that," Mari answered. "During the investigation, Masashi and I heard music playing from the merry-go-round room while we were in the hidden library."

"Ah, yes, I believe I started it up to ensure that the machine should be working," Haruyuki said. "I am glad to be of assistance."

"You know, you don't seem angry that you were wrong!" Haruka said, feigning shock.

Haruyuki chuckled as he made a slight bow. "I do not mind it at all. As a critic, I am to ask questions and point out potential flaws in others' logic. As long as we are on the right track, then I am doing my work correctly."

"Ugh…" Kumi groaned as more of his peers stared back at him with even more wariness than before.

Sorao clapped his hands once. "Man, that's pretty good logic there! So now it's certain that Kumi could have opened the door at the right time, then. This time, let's really get back to where I was!

"Now, Kumi then went into the room and killed Atsushi in the span of a minute," he continued. "Remember that Kumi still had his other can of glitter. I imagine that after the deed was done, much of the glitter on his hands was gone."

"Well, the knife certainly had a lot of glitter on it," Mari said, "but I'd imagine that he'd still have a substantial amount of it on his palms."

"Exactly. And that's when _that_ comes into play…"

Sorao then widened his smile, insofar as it looked a bit too confident. "Once he was back to where he was, he simply took out the other can of glitter and applied it on his hands. That way, it'd look as if he hadn't lost any glitter at all." He then turned toward a certain friend of Kumi's. "Hey, Haruka. You were with Kumi during the investigation, right? Did you take a look at his palms?"

Haruka looked away, looking a bit shamefaced. "I… I really don't want to answer..."

"You don't need to. Your answer gives it all away. If I'd been wrong about it, you would've answered otherwise." Sorao chuckled as he glanced back at the others. "So that's my theory. What do you think?"

"Wh-What kind of theory is that?!" Masashi exclaimed. "For one, instead of doing all that complicated stuff involving the glitter, why didn't he try to get rid of the glitter on his hands?"

"What do you mean?" Sorao asked.

"If Kumi planned to kill Atsushi, then he definitely should have gotten rid of the glitter wholly," Masashi explained. "After all, the glitter directly implicates him!"

Sorao clicked his tongue, smirking. "That's the funny thing, actually. There really is no good reason for it. But… what if he felt _compelled_ to put it on?"

"'Compelled'?" Masashi said.

Sorao then turned toward the storyteller. "Kumi, didn't you say earlier that you got the glitter from the shop because it was a good luck charm?"

* * *

_"So, uh, why the fuck did he even have glitter in the first place?" Sayua asked. "What was the use of that?!"_

_"I-It's meant to be a good luck charm!" Kumi answered a bit more enthusiastically. "I was looking for the Woodland King, and—"_

_"All right, all right, that's enough out of you," Sorao said coolly yet dismissively. "What's more important is that Kumi had glitter on his person. It's very much possible that he was the one who held the knife, right?"_

* * *

As soon as Sorao said that, Masashi realized exactly what he was about to say. This was not good at all.

"U-Um, yes, Sir Sorao," Kumi answered, unaware of the incoming accusation. "S-Since it's a shiny object, I may be granted good luck if I put it on my hands."

Sorao chuckled merrily as he looked back at the rest of the group. "And there you have it! It all makes sense now, doesn't it? The glitter turned out to be nothing but a good luck charm!"

"Wh-What?!" Sister Hikari exclaimed, her mouth covered by her hand. "Th-That's why there was glitter in the first place?"

"It sounds so preposterous, but then again, this is Kumi that we're talking about…" Tanjiro said. "I guess that in his head, it makes a lot more sense."

"S-Sir Sorao, you're greatly mistaken!" Kumi said pathetically. "I-I did no such thing, really!"

"In that case, prove me wrong," Sorao said, showing him an ever so slight smile. "If I'm wrong, then you should still have the other can of glitter on you."

"I-Isn't that right, Kumi?" Haruka asked, pumping her fists in encouragement. "Go on! Show him he's wrong!"

Kumi's eyes widened in horror, and Masashi knew why: during the investigation, he had checked his satchel, only to find that his second can of glitter was empty for some reason. Kumi had claimed that he had never used it, not having checked his satchel ever since he had begun his search for the Woodland King.

"Um… Both my cans of glitter are empty!" Kumi explained pathetically. "The Woodland King must've made the glitter in the second can disappear!"

The crowd looked more coldly at him, Kumi's every word damning him again and again. Much as it was hard to believe, Masashi must admit that Sorao had a pretty good reason to suspect Kumi, and as long as Kumi could not explain why his second can of glitter was empty, his guilt would be assumed. Even Masashi began to have a hard time with believing Kumi, since he could not fathom any explanation for it other than Kumi had used it as part of his murder scheme.

"It makes a lot of sense to say he's the killer, actually," Murphy said, nodding along.

"No arguments from me," Abraham said, smirking snidely. "The little fucker's as guilty as sin."

"Your reasoning does sound sensible," Futaba said.

"Why, I dare say it makes perfect sense!" Maiha added, smiling.

"I knew it! My gut was telling me there was something weird about that little brat!" Sayua said, looking condescendingly at him.

"Th-Then it was him! He did it!" Hikari added, pointing an accusatory finger at him.

Kumi looked around himself, but gasped in horror as many of the others began to voice their suspicions of him. The same crowd of people whom he had deemed his friends had now turned against him, and the worse part was that his childish mindset made him look all the easier to condemn as the killer. He hugged his teddy bear as tears welled in his eyes.

"I… I didn't do it!" Kumi said. "I-I swear on the denizens' lives of the Pixie Kingdom that I'm not the killer!"

"If you're really not the killer, then fight back, will ya?"

To Masashi's surprise, it was Monokuma, who looked delighted at this turn of events. "It's no fun if you go down in one hit, you know!"

"B-But…" Kumi faced toward his two fast friends. "Lady Haruka! Sir Arashi! You don't think I'm the killer… r-right?"

"I-I'm sorry, Kumi! But…" Haruka glanced away from him, her expression turning gloomy. "I can't deny that you look really, really suspicious right now!"

"Yeah… Sorry…" Arashi said, facing away from him as well.

"Wh-What…?" Kumi whimpered, shock running through his face. He began to weep as he turned toward the rest of them and found no mercy among them.

"Don't you realize it now?" Monokuma said. "In the class trial, the one who is best to defend you is you alone, my boy! Sure, you can turn toward who you think are your friends, but when they inevitably forsake you, you have only yourself as your defense!"

"M-My… defense?" Kumi said as he looked right at his teddy bear and hugged it tightly. "S-Sir Teddybane! Please… help me…!"

"Don't tell me you're actually consulting with your damn teddy bear now!" Sayua said, smirking. "Hah! What a joker he is!"

"He certainly isn't saying anything..." Sister Hikari said, an anxious expression on her face.

"Then... Kumi is..." Faye said.

"How unfortunate it will be if things turn out this way," Haruyuki said resignedly. "If he makes no defense, then we shall have to—"

"W-Wait! P-Please wait a second!"

This time, Kumi had said something at last, though his anxiety was still apparent on his face.

"I… I didn't do it!" Kumi said meekly. "I-I swear to you, I didn't meet with Sir Atsushi!"

"What the fuck does that have to do with anything?" Abraham said.

"Now, hold on." It was Sorao, who had raised his eyes as if this were the first time that he had said something interesting. "Let the guy speak, won't you? I mean, it'll be wrong if we don't let him speak his defense, you know."

Futaba sighed. "I cannot imagine what he has in mind, but it indeed is the proper thing to do."

"Um… thank you," Kumi answered. He now looked somewhat steady enough to look his accusers in the eye, but it would take a long time for him to make a full comeback, Masashi sensed.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"Well... If I were really the killer, then I must've planned it all… right?" Kumi continued meekly. "But… to have the plan work, **I**** needed Sir Atsushi to be alone**, right?"

"Yeah, I think so," Mari said. "Having another witness might've caused needless trouble for the killer."

"B-But I didn't meet with Sir Atsushi tonight!" Kumi said, gaining some more confidence. "**I was in the dining room and then spent my time with Sir Arashi!** I-It was impossible to tell Sir Atsushi to go into the carriage alone!"

"Ah, but maybe you somehow got him to do what you wanted," Haruyuki replied.

"Maybe Kumi **sent him a written message?**" Faye suggested.

"O-Or maybe Kumi **got someone to tell him to do so!**" Hikari said.

"Well, y-you can't prove it!" Kumi ended, trying to look as bold as he could. "Now, please, don't blame me any more!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Atsushi's Note**

**I agree with that!**

"Faye, you're right!" Masashi said. "Atsushi had a note telling him to go into the carriage alone!"

"Wait, Atsushi had a note?" Sorao said, a tad confused. "Where did you find it?"

"It was in Atsushi's pocket," Masashi answered. "And the note says, 'If you wish to learn the secret of this ship, make sure to ride one of the carriages of the merry-go-round by yourself on the third round. Once you are done, the secret shall be yours. Make sure to tell no one of this.'"

"The… secret of this ship?" Haruka said uncertainly. "Wh-What does that mean?"

"I don't know, but it doesn't matter, I suspect," Masashi answered. "I'm pretty sure that the writer put it there to lure Atsushi."

"Lure?" Sayua scoffed. "But isn't that whole thing obviously a trap?"

"Well… Atsushi was always insistent on knowledge and whatnot," Sister Hikari said, contemplating. "He always looked down on us for not having more scientific talents."

"Yeah… I think that for Atsushi, he would have done nearly anything to get his hands on this secret," Mari answered. "He never told me about this, so he must have been following the note's instructions."

"And come to think of it," Sorao said, "that does explain the weird thing that Atsushi did. Remember what it was, Masashi?"

_Huh? What's he talking about?_

Masashi thought for a moment, recalling everything that Atsushi had done tonight. Once he was near the end, he realized what the answer was.

"Atsushi told Tanjiro that he had something to ask him later!" Masashi answered, shocked that that had been his motivation all along.

"Yeah, he did, but I don't know what he wanted to talk with me about," Tanjiro said. "All he said was that it was important that I stay for the ride."

It was then that Haruyuki chuckled. "Ah, then the answer is all too clear now. Atsushi did not actually want to ask you something. No, all he was concerned about was your presence."

"My… presence?" Tanjiro cocked his head slightly. "I don't understand. Why was I needed?"

Masashi thought back to the circumstances of the ride. It was all too clear now why Atsushi had needed Tanjiro to be on it.

"He needed to make sure that there were an odd number of riders aboard," Masashi answered. "Remember that there were ten of us originally."

"Yes… Then Faye and I headed to the kitchen, which left eight," Futaba said.

"Then I left, which left seven," Sister Hikari said.

"Hmm… I'm pretty sure I was going to leave," Haruka said, counting on her fingers, "but since Sorao was going to leave with me as well, in the end, things evened out—though the number was odd!"

"Exactly. There were five of us left, which was enough for Atsushi," Masashi said. "But Tanjiro said that he was going to leave, which would make Atsushi have to sit with one of us."

"And that's why… he asked me to stay?" Tanjiro said. "That… That makes a lot of sense now."

"But if that's true, then why didn't Atsushi just ask Haruka to stay when she said she'd leave?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Well... I did mention that I was going to go help Kumi," Haruka answered. "Maybe he thought it'd be weird if he asked me to stay? Though to be honest, even if he had asked me, I would've made an excuse to leave anyway." Haruka raised her arms as if cheering someone on. "I can't very well leave Kumi alone when it comes to his search for pixies, now, can I?"

"More importantly, it doesn't matter that the killer never went to see Atsushi," Sorao said. "The killer knew that Atsushi would willingly isolate himself."

"That'd explain why he didn't protest when I said I'd ride with Mari," Masashi said, recalling that moment. "By not saying anything, he'd naturally be by himself on the ride."

"Wait, hold on," Faye said. "The note told Atsushi to ride in one of the carriages by himself. But if the killer slipped him the note before we had access to the ride, how did the killer know that the carriages would be used?"

Sorao shrugged. "Oh, have you forgotten already? Remember what Monokuma said earlier?"

* * *

_"Anyway, if the killer had put the tablecloth in the hidden room in advance," Mari said, "doesn't that mean that this killing was planned in advance?"_

_"If that's true, then it means that the killer knew about the specifics of the AR ride, right?" Haruka asked. "Maybe Monokuma told the killer!"_

_Monokuma giggled. "Well, you're slightly off the mark! As a matter of fact, the blackened did ask me about the ride last night, but the only thing I told the killer was that everyone would ride in the carriages as part of the AR ride."_

* * *

"Ah, that's right!" Faye said. "So thanks to Monokuma, the killer managed to lure Atsushi to the carriage by himself! He's the guilty one here!"

"Hey, don't you call me guilty, when I'm not the one on trial here!" Monokuma replied. "And just to be clear, I didn't tell the killer to write Knowledge Man the note. The only thing I did was give the killer that juicy tip! Everything else the killer came up on their own!"

"In other words," Sorao said, his smile widening, "because of the note, Kumi knew that Atsushi was alone in the spade carriage."

"N-No way…" Kumi said, eyes watering as he looked down at his teddy bear. "I… I…"

Sorao chuckled as he put his fingers on his hair fringe. "Man, pretty pathetic that you made an argument at last, only for it to be shot down hard. It almost makes me feel sorry for you. Now, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Kumi could say nothing as everyone else gazed at him, awaiting his answer. A few seconds passed, and he only hugged his teddy bear tighter, no longer facing his peers, tears flowing from his shut eyes. Meanwhile, most of the others looked rather sure that they were on the right track here; the few that appeared troubled, such as Haruka and Arashi, instead looked elsewhere, offering the accused no more help.

_Is... this it?_ Masashi thought. _Is Kumi truly the killer?_

Though Sorao's explanation made a bit of sense, he could not but feel that they were all forgetting something rather important. He had had this feeling earlier in the trial, but it had risen again here, just when they seemed to have found the killer at last. Whatever this feeling pinpointed to, Masashi could not but think that someone had made sure that the class trial should go this way.

Just then, Sorao gazed toward him and raised his eyes a bit. "Hey, Masashi. Are you all right, man?"

"Huh?" Masashi looked askance at him. "Why do you ask?"

"Well... You seem to be thinking hard about something." Sorao then showed a small carefree smile. "Is there something you want to say?"

* * *

**And that's it for the first part of the trial! The class trial in this part is simply piecing together most of what you, the readers, have seen in the investigation. This isn't a particularly hard case, so I'm guessing that you've already figured most of this out. And by the way, if I could, I'd put in a Mass Panic Debate at the part wherein Maiha, Arashi, and Kumi claim to be innocent. It's too bad the format doesn't really allow for it.**

**Anyway, the face-off with the killer is in the next chapter, and so this is your last chance to say which character you think killed Atsushi, aka, Knowledge Man.**


	13. The Woodland King Comes (9)

The class glanced at Masashi as Sorao directed their attention to him. They had deduced that it was Kumi that had killed Atsushi, and yet Masashi felt uneasy about the conclusion. There was definitely something that they had not talked about, and until he figured out what it was and how it was important, he could not very well let the class trial end already.

"Well?" Sorao said, gently smiling. "Go on. Say what's on your mind, Masashi."

"I... was just thinking that we should go over the whole thing first," Masashi answered. "I don't think we should vote until we're absolutely sure that Kumi's the killer. There may be something we've forgotten to talk about."

Kumi, weeping, looked at him as if he were his only hope. "S-Sir Masashi! Y-You believe I'm not the killer, right?!"

"I don't know," Masashi answered, "but if we talk it out and find another clue, then maybe we'll believe you."

"Oh, come on!" Sayua said. "Do we have to? We've already figured out who the fucking killer is, haven't we? So let's get to the damn voting already!"

Futaba clicked her tongue as she glanced elsewhere. "Well, I should conclude that there is no need for further deliberation."

"Hah! Even the rich girl agrees with me!" Sayua said. "What do you have to say to that—"

"Now hold on," Futaba said. "Let me finish. If I were of a hasty mind, then I would most certainly agree to end this miserable affair. But... I cannot but wonder whether it is right to do so. I am almost sure that our conclusion is right, but the very little bit of uncertainty that Masashi shows tells me that we may have indeed missed something. A bit more discussion will do us some good, I say."

"Wh-What? What the hell are you saying?!" Sayua scowled. "What's there to fucking talk about?!"

"Uncouth as those words are, I must agree with the commoner," Maiha said, arms crossed. "We shall only waste valuable time if we continue with this."

"Yeah, I say that we get on with the voting already," Sorao said, standing in a relaxed position.

Futaba shook her head, however. "In any other situation, I would gladly agree, but in the class trial, our lives are at risk, and I much prefer a decision not made in haste. And moreover, Sorao, if your theory that the storyteller killed him is true, then there should be nothing wrong with going through it once more, yes?"

Sorao lessened his smile, it being clear that he had expected her to say otherwise. A few others looked surprised at her decision as well; up to now, she had been by Sorao's side, taking in his every bit of advice and suggestion as Atsushi had fallen out of favor for her. But it seemed that she had enough sense to know when it was best to do things her way.

A few seconds later, the musician shrugged and showed off his usual gladsome smile. "Well, when you put it that way, I guess it'd be silly to get to the voting now. I'm pretty sure I'm right, but hey, if it suits you, I welcome the talk! And besides..." He gave Kumi a sidelong glance. "The more I think about it, the more I can see that it's only right that we give the boy a few more minutes before judgment time."

"Well... if he's saying that," Murphy said, "then I suppose we ought to take our time here."

"Yeah..." Sister Hikari said. "I really don't want to die here and now, just because of our haste..."

Now that the one who had spearheaded the theory had given up on fighting Futaba's suggestion that they discuss the matter, the others quickly gave in to the suggestion. Masashi readied himself, knowing that this was the last chance that he had to find what was off about all this. If he could, then the trial would keep going, but in a way that a certain person might not like.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"To begin with, Kumi held his whole hunting thing," Sorao said. "That's the reason he gave for getting the pink glitter from the shop."

"Then once he was alone, the fool headed to the playroom," Maiha said. "Afterwards, he applied the glitter on his hands and **opened the hidden door.**"

"He then donned the tablecloth that **he had prepared beforehand,**" Haruyuki said. "And he waited by the hidden door until the carriages began to spin."

"After that, he went outside and opened the doors to the carriages, right?" Red Mask said. "All in **the span of a minute!**"

"Yeah. He headed over to Atsushi's carriage," Sorao answered. "Because of the note, he knew that Atsushi was **alone** and in the **spade carriage.**"

"Then after he killed him, he **left the tablecloth behind,**" Maiha said, "and fled to his original spot, pretending to have been there all along!"

"And he used his second can of glitter on his hands," Haruka said, "to make us think that the glitter had been there all along…"

"And that's exactly what happened!" Sorao declared.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Atsushi's Note**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Wait a minute… The part about the spade carriage isn't right at all!" Masashi said.

Sorao raised his eyes. "What? What are you talking about?"

"You say that Kumi knew that Atsushi was alone in that carriage," Masashi explained, "all because he had directed him to do so with the note. But that can't be right at all. Look at Atsushi's note: 'If you wish to learn the secret of this ship, make sure to ride one of the carriages of the merry-go-round by yourself on the third round. Once you are done, the secret shall be yours. Make sure to tell no one of this message.'"

"And what does that prove, exactly?" Maiha asked.

"The directions in the note... aren't that particular," Masashi answered. "Yes, it told Atsushi to be in the carriage alone. But here's the thing: nowhere on the note does it say _which_ carriage he had to go on."

"Ah!" Haruka squealed. "Th-That's right! It doesn't say that at all!"

"And thus, if Kumi had sent him the note," Masashi continued, "he wouldn't have known that he was in the spade carriage only from the note!"

A few of the others looked at one another amazedly, especially Kumi, who seemed to have regained the courage to face his peers.

"Hey, now that I think about it…" Faye said. "How did Kumi know which carriage Atsushi was in?"

"I don't think we've talked about that at all!" Sister Hikari said.

"Well, duh! He simply looked into the carriages as he headed for the control panel!" Sayua suggested, none too fazed by this troubling development.

"Sorry, but that's not possible," Masashi said. "Remember, no one can see through the windows when they're up, so Kumi wouldn't have been able to see where Atsushi was."

"But Kumi had to open up all the doors with the control panel, right?" Sister Hikari said. "Wouldn't he have been able to see Atsushi then?"

Maiha nodded. "Yes, that must be it! That is the only sensible explanation!"

_Could he have done that?_ Masashi thought for a moment and recalled what he had seen of the ride earlier.

"No, that's not it," Masashi answered. "It's true that during the ride, the whole merry-go-round had no lighting on the outside aside from the carriage signs. But even then, during the spinning part, all the lights in the carriages were off. It would have been very difficult for Kumi to see who was inside without being near the carriages."

"So why did he not simply go up to the carriages and check which one had whom?" Futaba asked.

"I don't think it would've been easy to look at who was inside," Mari answered. "Besides the lighting, the carriages were all spinning. It'd be too hard to take a good look."

"And not to mention that he would have to find Atsushi and kill him in about half a minute," Masashi said. "After all, the spinning part only lasted that long. With how extraordinarily difficult it would have been to find out where Atsushi was, I don't think Kumi could've killed him."

Though sure in his assertion, Masashi was much surprised at how things had unfolded. The one thing that they had forgotten about was that the killer must have known which carriage Atsushi was in, and yet they had not talked about it at all earlier, when they had worked out how the killer had entered the carriage.

"S-Sir Masashi!" Kumi said excitedly, beaming. "I-I knew you'd be on the side of good in the end!"

"So… Kumi's innocent?" Arashi said, gaping.

"I don't know about that," Abraham said, rubbing his chin. "That set aside, all the evidence still suggests that he's the killer."

"Yeah... the glitter's the most obvious piece of evidence, right?" Sorao said, who looked a bit startled at this revelation. "I mean... he had it on him, that's for sure."

"Exactly!" Maiha pointed at Kumi. "He's the killer! The addlepated commoner must have done it!"

"But… Masashi has a pretty good point here," Tanjiro said. "I'm not sure what to believe, really."

"I also do not think that Kumi could have killed Atsushi," Haruyuki said. "It may be a small detail, but even the smallest details can paint a picture in a wholly different light."

"Hmm… This is troubling," Mari said. "It seems that we're split down the middle."

"_**Hold on!**_"

This time, it was none other than Monokuma, who had opened up his arms, his expression stern.

"You're split on this matter, you say?!" Monokuma said, a bit of mirth in his voice. "Well, I've got a way to settle this once and for all!"

"You do?" Tanjiro said.

"Yep! As part of the process, the trial grounds will transform as well!" Monokuma answered. "It'll be spectacular, I promise you!"

The students here looked at one another with much bewilderment. Up until now, the class trial had gone rather realistically, but now, there was talk of having the trial grounds transform into something. It certainly was unlike any other court that Masashi had ever heard of.

"Can't we just talk this out without any transformations and whatnot?" Faye asked.

"And what would be fun about that?!" Monokuma said, outraged. "Now, then… Up we go!"

Once a circular panel showed up before his throne, Monokuma took out a great key and put it into the panel, whereafter his throne rose upwards, much to the students' surprise. And before long, their podiums rose as well. The panels in their podiums then showed something:

"Is Kumi the killer? Select 'Yes' or 'No'."

At this point, Masashi could not believe that he was. He selected 'no', whereafter the students' podiums then lined up in two rows in an area right below the roof.

* * *

**Debate Scrum**

**Question: Is Kumi the killer?**

**Yes: Sorao, Maiha, Abraham, Tanjiro, Sayua, Murphy, Red Mask, Hikari**

**No: Masashi, Futaba, Sister Hikari, ****Faye, Mari, Kumi, ****Haruka, ****Arashi, Haruyuki**

"Wasn't Kumi **alone **during the murder? He has no alibi, right?" Sorao said.

"Yes, but a few other people were **alone **as well, weren't they?" Sister Hikari said.

"Those people have **alibis**, don't they? So they're innocent!" Murphy said.

"Not all of them have **alibis**. For one, Arashi and Maiha were alone as well," Futaba said.

"M-More importantly, Kumi knew about the **details **of the ride!" Hikari said.

"Even if he knew of the **details**, he didn't know about Atsushi's location!" Haruka said.

"Is it not possible that he simply **guessed** where Atsushi sat?" Maiha said.

"In such a short time span, it would've been too risky if he had simply **guessed**!" Arashi said.

"But if he hadn't known, it would've been impossible to find Atsushi. After all, all the carriages look the **same**," Tanjiro said.

"No, they're not all the **same**! Each carriage carries its unique sign on the outside!" Faye said.

"What the hell are you saying? Are you saying the killer somehow used the **signs**, then?" Sayua said.

"The killer must've seen which carriage Atsushi went into and remembered with the help of the **signs**," Mari said.

"So the damn brat must've gone into the **merry-go-round** room before the ride to see him go inside the spade carriage," Abraham said.

"I never went to the **merry-go-round** room before the ride! I was with Sir Arashi!" Kumi said.

"Then what about all the **evidence** that points to Kumi?" Red Mask said.

"All that **evidence** must've been planted by the killer to frame Kumi for the murder!" Masashi said.

**This is our answer!**

Once no one made any further argument, the students' podiums and Monokuma's throne fell back to where they had been originally.

"We can all agree now that Kumi's innocent, right?" Masashi said. "He couldn't have done it, because he had no knowledge of where Atsushi was!"

"Knowledge, huh…" Mari said.

"And with the glitter," Masashi continued, "I'm pretty sure that the killer plotted to use it to frame Kumi, knowing that Kumi had it on him tonight as part of his fairy hunting. It was pretty convincing, if your reactions and accusations were any sign."

"Yeah… we were nearly had by this trick," Murphy said. "I don't think the boy's the culprit anymore."

Abraham scoffed. "I suppose it's fucking unlikely that he's guilty now."

"Even this phantom thief must admit that she was wrong about this!" Red Mask said.

"That's what I've been saying all along!" Kumi said, showing a mix of upsetness and gladness. "I was outside the merry-go-round room all along! I told you, I _told you—_"

"Yeah, yeah, no need to be so smug about it!" Sayua said, waving him away.

"Ahem!" Futaba said, getting everyone's attention. "I am glad that we have come to a conclusion about the storyteller's innocence. But I am afraid that we have found ourselves with a new problem now. If Takumi Takamitsu is not the killer, then who is it?"

Masashi thought for a few seconds. "It has to be someone who saw Atsushi go into the spade carriage. Only by doing so could the killer know which carriage to go to in the short time they had for the murder."

"Um... if I remember correctly," Haruka said nervously, "didn't Sorao see you guys go into the carriages?"

"Huh?" Sorao said, glancing askance at her.

"Yeah, you were definitely there!" Haruka continued. "You definitely saw Atsushi go into the spade carriage! After all, you're the one who pressed the button to get the carriages moving!"

"Hey, that's right!" Sayua exclaimed. "That guy was there, so he could've done it!"

"Wh-What...? H-Hey, come on, now..." Sorao said, raising his hands nervously as the others now glanced at him. "What you say is true, but weren't you there as well, Haruka? We left together, so you had seen him go into the spade carriage, hadn't you?"

The others now looked more intensely at the two suspects, both of whom looked a bit livelier than usual.

"I-I'm not the killer!" Haruka said, her voice squeakier than usual. "Sure, I knew which carriage he was in, but that doesn't make me the killer! After all, I have an alibi! I was in the storeroom in the second deck's port hallway! If I had tried to go to the third deck, I'd have needed to go through the dining room!"

"But neither Haruyuki nor I saw you before the body discovery announcement played," Futaba said, "so your alibi is sound."

"Well, if the clown is innocent," Maiha said, having grown much sterner, "it follows that the killer must be the other one."

"Hey, chill out, won't you?" Sorao said, setting his right hand on his head while sounding as sad as if disappointed by this turn of events. "There's no way I'm the killer. I have an alibi as well."

"You do?" Faye said.

Sorao furrowed his brows as he set his arms akimbo and heaved a great sigh. "Come on… I was in my room during the murder. If I'd tried to go to the merry-go-round room, Kumi would've spotted me."

"Right! But I only saw Sir Sorao when he headed downstairs!" Kumi said. "He must've been in his room the whole time!"

"But weren't you alone when you headed over to the men's restroom after you left the merry-go-round room?" Mari asked.

"Well, I was, but I swear to you, all I did was go to the men's restroom and then go back down to my room," Sorao said. "And besides, I did that early on. The spinning carriages' part happened in the latter half of the ride, so I couldn't have killed him before passing by Kumi."

"Then it seems that you too are innocent," Haruyuki said.

"That's right. I've done nothing wrong—"

"H-Hold on!"

It was Sister Hikari, but this time, she seemed much more unnerved and skittish.

"I'm sorry, but I can't agree with what you're saying!" she cried out. "After all... you've been acting oddly this whole time!"

"Wh-What? What do you mean, 'acting oddly'?" Sorao said, his tone a bit more serious than usual.

"Well... I've been thinking about it... and I've just realized that this whole class trial, you've tried to make us think that Kumi's the killer," Sister Hikari answered. "You were insistent on his guilt, weren't you?"

"Yeah... He even got Kumi to embarrass himself a few times," Mari said.

* * *

_"U-Um, yes, Sir Sorao," Kumi answered, unaware of the incoming accusation. "S-Since it's a shiny object, I may be granted good luck if I put it on my hands."_

_Sorao chuckled merrily as he looked back at the rest of the group. "And there you have it! It all makes sense now, doesn't it? The glitter turned out to be nothing but a good luck charm!"_

* * *

_"S-Sir Sorao, you're greatly mistaken!" Kumi said pathetically. "I-I did no such thing, really!"_

_"In that case, prove me wrong," Sorao said, showing him an ever so slight smile. "If I'm wrong, then you should still have the other can of glitter on you."_

_"I-Isn't that right, Kumi?" Haruka asked, pumping her fists in encouragement. "Go on! Show him he's wrong!"_

_Kumi's eyes widened in horror, and Masashi knew why: during the investigation, he had checked his satchel, only to find that his second can of glitter was empty for some reason. Kumi had claimed that he had never used it, not having checked his satchel ever since he had begun his search for the Woodland King._

_"Um… Both my cans of glitter are empty!" Kumi explained pathetically. "The Woodland King must've made the glitter in the second can disappear!"_

* * *

"R-Right... I accused him, all right..." But Sorao sighed once more, lowering his head in disappointment. "But you know, so what? I truly thought Kumi did it, and I happened to be wrong in my judgment that time. It's not surprising that even I make mistakes, right?"

"But... when you said those awful things... you... you sounded too _keen _about it!" Kumi said. "I-It's like... you really needed everyone to vote for me!"

"In other words, if you have been the killer all along, Sorao," Haruyuki added, "then it was in your benefit to try to pin the blame on him."

Sorao ground his teeth as the others gazed suspiciously at him. He must not have foreseen that the spotlight would now be on him, and Masashi could only imagine how much he loathed this.

"Wh-What? Get your head straight, man. I mean, I have an alibi, don't you remember?" Sorao said.

Haruyuki shook his head. "Are we absolutely sure that your alibi is as watertight as we assume? Perhaps you have somehow deceived us by appearing to have an alibi. You were alone at the time, so you definitely had the chance to do something suspicious without our knowing about it. And with your behavior, I have great reason to think that you are hiding something from us."

"I can definitely see him as the killer!" Haruka exclaimed. "After all, he's clearly tried to frame Kumi, our adorable little boy!"

"So something about his alibi must be off!" Faye said.

"Yeah… There's gotta be some trick involved here!" Sayua said, clenching her right fist. "And there's no way in fuck I'm gonna fall for it!"

"A trick, huh..." Tanjiro said meekly. "I wouldn't put it past him..."

"Huh? Deceived? Suspicious? You're talking about _m__e?_" Sorao raised his brow. "I don't know what to say, guys. I was in my room, and that's all you should care about."

But Futaba looked too troubled to appear in agreement with her unofficial advisor. "That is to be determined, I'm afraid, Sorao. I was a bit hasty in my judgment of the storyteller, so I am minded to think carefully. I want to trust you, of course, but at this point, it does not hurt to delve into your activities a bit more."

"And if we work together," Kumi added, trying to sound as encouraging as he could, "we'll find out how Sir Sorao tricked us all!"

As more and more of the class voiced their agreement, the glee on the musician's face waned, and yet, even now, Sorao, on the whole, looked far less irked by this sudden interrogation into his activities than Masashi would think. Was he that confident that they would not figure out his trick?

_If I can't find what he's hiding from us, then I'll be out of leads!_ Masashi thought. _I have to find it to survive!_

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"So, Sorao," Haruyuki began, "were you truly in your room the whole time?"

"Well, not the whole time, really. After I left the merry-go-round room, I **went to the men's restroom** on the second deck," Sorao said. "Then I thought I should go back to my room."

"And I saw Sir Sorao a minute or two after Lady Haruka and Sir Arashi left!" Kumi said.

"Since he headed back to his room really early on," Mari said, "there's **no way Sorao could've already killed** Atsushi by that time."

"Yeah, that's right," Sorao said. "After I came back to my room, all I did was **relax and chill there.**"

"Huh… nothing suspicious about that," Sister Hikari said. "But that means he can't be the killer!"

"Besides him and Haruka, could there be **another suspect** that saw Atsushi go into the carriage?" Tanjiro asked.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Hikari's Account**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Sorao, are you sure that you were in your room the whole time?" Masashi asked, readying himself for his answer. There was no way that this was not going to end well, given what he had done.

Sorao raised his eyes a bit, as if his interest had been piqued. "Yeah, of course, dude. It was kind of boring, but I needed a break."

"Well, that's funny…" Masashi said. "Because someone actually saw you head into your room. It was Hikari."

Hikari started once everyone looked at her. "Th-That's right… I did."

"Well, what's so bad about that?" Sorao asked. "I didn't see her, but our doors aren't that near to each other, so I could've easily missed her. She must've seen me as I headed back."

But Masashi shook his head. "No, that's not what's suspicious. Hikari told me you'd gone back into your room a minute or so before the body discovery announcement played."

"Y-Yeah… I-I did," Hikari said, not even glancing toward him. "I-I was going to take a walk, but… I saw you!"

"Why didn't you mention this earlier?" Futaba asked, irked.

"S-Sorry… I-I didn't think about saying it…" Hikari said, her grimace worsening. "I-I'm not good at this kind of stuff!"

"Well, better late than never," Masashi said. "And what's more, she saw you dragging a rope into your room. It doesn't sound as if you'd been simply taking a nightly walk."

Haruka widened her eyes. "He had... a rope? Th-That's definitely not normal! I mean, I'm pretty sure musicians don't use ropes!"

"Gah!" Sorao said as the others now looked at him with wary gazes. "Y-You saw that, Hikari?"

"Y-Yeah!" Hikari said. "It was definitely a rope! I-It was pretty long, too!"

"L-Look, there's a good explanation for that!" Sorao replied, raising his right hand. "I found the rope nearby after I started my walk, and I was curious, so I took it back to my room. That's all. Now could we just let that go and focus on something else?"

"No way in hell we're gonna let this go!" Sayua said. "That rope's too fucking suspicious, and I know it!"

Sorao sighed as he set his hands on his hips. "Are you saying that it's related to the murder?"

"Well, you definitely must've used it for something!" Haruka said.

"Oh, really?" Sorao said. "If so, then tell me. Tell me how I used it."

_What's up with him?_ Masashi thought, befuddled. Even after he had been caught on his lie, Sorao still looked not at all rattled as if it were no big deal.

Haruyuki chuckled. "If we reason how Sorao used the rope in his crime, we shall be able to determine his guilt."

"Are you sure about that?" Sorao said, a somewhat troubled look on his face "I'm pretty sure it's not related to it at all. It's just an unlucky coincidence that I was seen with it, really."

Since Sorao was less than forthcoming when approached about his suspicious activity, it was up to the rest of them to figure out what he had done.

"Hey, I was thinking…" It was Mari, who seemed to be deep in thought, glancing at nowhere in particular. "If Sorao used the rope for something, he most likely had to tie it to something, right?"

"Yes, I cannot imagine how else he would use a rope here," Haruyuki said. "But to what could he have tied the rope?"

_Come on, think!_ Masashi thought. _The issue here is Sorao's alibi. He insists on it, but if I think about the rope ties into the trick he used, then we'll get him to confess!_

* * *

**Hangman's Gambit**

**Question: What was the rope tied to as part of the trick that Sorao used to establish an alibi?**

?-?-?-?-?-?-?

_The rope was certainly not part of the actual killing, so it must've been used outside the merry-go-round room and the hidden room._

R-?-?-?-?-?-?

_The rooms that Sorao went to after he left the merry-go-round room are the men's restroom and the third deck's garden. He must've done something in the latter._

R-A-I-?-?-?-?

_What's in the garden? Hmm, let me see… There's a stream, there are a lot of flowers… And I think there's a great opening on the ground as well._

R-A-I-L-?-?-?

_Yeah, that opening is the aperture on the ceiling of the fourth deck. All the decks have apertures that line up with each other, and they're certainly wide enough for a person to fit through._

R-A-I-L-I-N-?

_Wait a minute… Is that what that rope was used for?_

R-A-I-L-I-N-G

_And the aperture comes with a railing that's definitely sturdy enough to have a rope tied to!_

RAILING

"That's it!" Masashi exclaimed before he pointed at Sorao. "I know what the trick you used was!"

"What?" Sorao said, eyeing him nervously. "What do you mean, 'trick'? I didn't do anything, man."

"No, that's wrong!" Masashi exclaimed, a surge of excitement rushing through him. "You had the rope with you, there's no doubt. And the purpose of that was making yourself a fake alibi."

"A… fake alibi?" Tanjiro said. "But how?"

"Remember all the apertures on the ceiling of each deck?" Masashi said. "The aperture of the fourth deck comes with railing on the third deck, to prevent passengers from falling through it. What if someone were to tie a rope to the railing and let the rope fall through the aperture? If that person climbed up the rope, the short hallway where the merry-go-round and shop doors are would be avoided wholly."

"Because the fourth deck's and the third deck's gardens line up vertically, it'd make the perfect way to get around Kumi," Mari said, nodding along.

Faye gasped, setting a hand over her mouth. "That's… ingenious! Brilliant! Clever!"

The others looked amazed as well at Masashi's suggestion. Some like Arashi and Red Mask exclaimed at the solution, whereas others like Abraham and Haruyuki had more subdued reactions, instead mumbling their awe.

Sorao smiled, but this time, his smile carried a hint of nervousness and surprise. "Wh-What an interesting idea… But if that's true, then when did I set the rope to the railing? After all, I'm pretty sure someone would've noticed it if I'd done it much earlier."

"Well, that's easy to answer," Masashi said. "You must've done it after you left for the men's restroom on the second deck and before you encountered Kumi on your way back."

"The aperture on the third deck's floor is far from the hallway," Haruyuki said, "so it is fully possible that Kumi did not see it at all while standing before the merry-go-round door."

"N-No way!" Kumi said. "You mean there was rope hanging from the garden nearby?"

Masashi nodded. "This way of getting around you worked only if everyone was in set positions throughout the ship. If even one person left to go through the third deck's garden, there was a chance that Sorao's plan would be discovered."

"But… in the end, no one did, huh? What good luck he must've had!" Haruka said. "By the way… for the rope, where and when did he get it?"

"I reckon he got it from the storeroom you were searching in later, Haruka," Masashi said. "As for when he got it, it was most likely the same time that he got the tablecloth to shield himself with."

"And if I recall correctly, the tablecloth is said to have been stowed in the hidden room," Sister Hikari said. "So… I guess he could've done the same thing with the rope."

Sorao groaned as he tried to keep up his smile. "Come on, man… I admit I could've done that trick with the rope, but what about the glitter?"

"Sorry to say, but Murphy saw you take a can of glitter from the shop tonight," Masashi said. "You said that it looked interesting, but you must have actually taken it to frame Kumi."

"H-Hey now, that can't be right!" Sorao said, raising a hand in protest. "To do it, I must've known that there'd be glitter used in that fairy hunting thing going on! And I wasn't told about it at all! I mean, did you know about it, Masashi?"

"Well… I have to admit, I didn't know that there was a hunt until tonight," Masashi said. "Kumi, how many people did you tell?"

"Um… besides Lady Haruka and Sir Arashi," Kumi answered, "I think I only told Lady Faye about the hunt for the Woodland King."

"Then you truly didn't know that Kumi would use glitter, Sorao?" Sister Hikari asked.

Sorao sneered. "Of course not—"

"_You lie!_"

A loud and forceful voice rang through the courtroom, and it was Arashi that it belonged to. The pyrotechnician pointed at Sorao angrily, his expression bereft of any composure.

"Wh-What the? Arashi?" Masashi said. "What is it?"

"Th-That man! He's a liar!" Arashi answered. "He knew about the hunt! He also knew about the glitter!"

"Huh?" Haruka said. "Arashi, what do you mean?"

"Um… This is something that I've just remembered, so that's why I didn't say anything earlier!" Arashi continued. "I was the one that suggested that Kumi use glitter as a good luck charm! But… I didn't actually come up with the idea on my own!"

"Did you get it from that guy, then?!" Sayua said.

Arashi nodded keenly. "I was looking around in the shop last night when Sorao came in and asked me what I was doing. After I told him about the hunt, he told me that if I wanted to use something shiny as a good luck charm, I'd better use glitter!"

"Why, you little…!" Sorao muttered as soon as all eyes were set on him. "W-Well… look, guys, I can explain…"

"You lied about not knowing about the glitter," Masashi said. "If there's a good explanation for it… please, tell us!"

"Well… I mean…" Sorao said, raising his hands defensively. "As you can see… I mean…"

"Sorao… are you the killer?" Haruka asked, eyeing him uneasily.

"I knew it! I knew you were fucking suspicious!" Sayua said.

"Y-Yeah! It has to be you!" Hikari added.

"N-No… Why, that's silly…" Sorao said. "There's no way… No way, no way, no way!"

"Well, Sorao?" Masashi said, looking sternly at him. "Have you anything to say for yourself?"

"One thing, really..." Sorao answered, nervously smiling. "There's no way… I'm the killer, man."

Masashi gasped as Sorao gave his answer, for his voice was wholly lacking of any desperation or unease. Instead, it sounded as calm and casual as if he were simply telling the rest of them what time it was. The look on his face was lacking in unease, and his hands were rested relaxedly in his pockets.

"Wh-What the…?" Masashi said, unsure as to what was going on. And from the looks of things, the others too looked befuddled by his change in reaction. "Why aren't you worried about what I've just said?"

"I admit, it's a pretty good theory. I do look awfully suspicious, and if I were you, I'd reach the same conclusion," Sorao said, showing no signs of anger or unease at all. "But… the one problem with it is that it's wrong."

"Wrong?" Mari asked. "What's wrong with what he said?"

"Well, think about it. Let's suppose that I had indeed done everything I've been accused of," Sorao said. "Let's go to the part where I killed Atsushi. Once that was done, I left through the hidden door and went back to the aperture in the garden, right?"

"Yeah, you needed to go back down to the fourth deck as soon as you can," Masashi said. "However brilliant your plan might be, it always had the chance of being exposed if you were not quick enough. After all, you can't fully guarantee that no one would see you or the rope. And in fact, Hikari did see you, so I guess your plan failed anyway."

Sorao chuckled. "True, true… But that's where your theory goes awry. Now, let me ask you: to get down from the third deck to the fourth deck, I needed to climb down the rope, right?"

"That's right!" Red Mask said. "You couldn't have simply jumped! After all, the height difference would've been great enough to hurt you upon the landing!"

"Exactly. But… once I climbed down, there was something I _couldn't_ do." Sorao then looked at Masashi, keeping his smile. "Tell them, Masashi."

_What? Why can't you tell them yourself?_ Masashi sighed as he thought about what Sorao was talking about. _Let me see… Once Sorao was on the fourth deck, there was one thing he would have to do. And that is—_

"Ah!" Masashi exclaimed as he faced the others uneasily. "He needed to get the rope back! But once he was on the fourth deck, it was impossible for him to do that! It was tied to the railing, so he couldn't have just pulled it down!"

Sorao laughed as he clapped for a moment. "You've got it, man! The only way to get the rope back was to go back up to the third deck and untie the rope from the railing. But then I'd have been stuck on the third deck."

"Wait, I've got it!" Sayua said. "You had an accomplice to help you with your plan!"

Sorao raised his eyes. "An accomplice, huh? That's a pretty interesting suggestion. Captain Monokuma, just to be sure... is the killer allowed to have an accomplice?"

"Well, sure, an accomplice is allowed!" Monokuma answered. "When you guys want to help one another out, who am I to stop you? But of course, only the one that kills someone else is deemed the blackened! An accomplice doesn't get any of the sweet and juicy rewards!"

"In short, an accomplice gains nothing." Sorao looked at his other classmates, giving them his usual winsome smile, but this time, with how carefree he was about the whole thing, it looked a bit unnerving. "And there's no evidence that suggests there even was an accomplice, right?"

"No... No, there isn't," Mari said. "The only other people who could've been your accomplice were Maiha, Arashi, or Kumi, since they could all access the third deck's garden without anyone noticing, but there's nothing suggesting that any of them helped you."

"So it's clear now that for me, it would've been impossible to pull off the crime," Sorao said.

"Then... you're not the killer?" Masashi said.

"That's right. I didn't kill Atsushi Morokuzu. Someone else did."

Many of the others gasped at Sorao's open declaration of innocence. Odd as it sounded, the man had been acting so suspiciously the whole time that it was all too surprising to see that the lead that they had been chasing the whole time was revealed to be wrong.

"But why did you try to make Kumi look like the killer?!" Haruka said.

"As I said earlier, I truly thought that Kumi might have done it," the musician answered. "Can you blame me for thinking that? He was alone, and there was the glitter..."

"He's only a child, you know!" Faye said.

"Oh, come on, really? He's no child. He's our age, but he still believes in fairies, elves, and all that baloney," Sorao replied, waving dismissively at the two women. "Really, it'd be weird _not_ to suspect him, don't you think?"

"H-How could you say that, Sir Sorao?!" Kumi said, weeping once more, though thankfully, the cold pressure from his peers was already gone. "I... I thought you were better than that..."

"Well... even without the whole framing thing going on, I have to admit, Kumi is a bit strange..." Tanjiro said meekly.

"Even for a commoner, he baffles me greatly," Maiha said.

"The boy certainly has a few screws loose," Murphy admitted.

On the other hand, Sorao's excuse, however ridiculous it might be, got him a few sympathetic gazes from the others. Kumi might be innocent, but that did not change the fact that he was a rather eccentric boy. Personally, Masashi found his weirdness a bit charming, but he could understand why most of the others did not think highly of him.

"More importantly, why didn't you tell us about the rope, then?!" Masashi said, growing more and more befuddled by Sorao's deeds. The rest of the court too looked puzzled by his answer, looking askance at him. Even if he was not the culprit, he definitely had some serious explaining to do, though the lack of unease on his face suggested the opposite.

"Hey, man, don't get all angry like that. It won't make things go any faster, you know," Sorao said, gesturing with his hands as if trying to calm him down. "To answer your question, though... I forgot about it."

"_You forgot?!_" Faye exclaimed. "There's no way you forgot something like that! You took the rope into your room, after all!"

"I agree. I find it incredibly unlikely that you conveniently forgot about the rope," Haruyuki added. "The only possible reason that you did not tell us is that you were purposely hiding it from us."

Sorao shook his head as if he were a disappointed father. "Look, let me explain myself... I took the rope inside, yes, but right after that, the body discovery announcement played. Finding Atsushi's body really scared the wits out of me, and I was doing my best to tend to Lady Inoshishi. After all, she seemed at risk of fainting at any time. I may have looked calm, but believe me, there was so much to handle that I was kind of tired out. With so much going on at the time, I naturally forgot about the rope and whatnot. So, uh..." He let out a nervous chuckle, scratching the back of his head. "Sorry that I failed you there, guys."

"Well, now that you've explained yourself, I... guess it's possible that you happened not to remember it," Sister Hikari said.

"Yeah... If I'd been in your shoes, I might've forgotten about it as well," Murphy said.

"I-I sometimes forget about a few important things, so I understand!" Red Mask remarked.

As many of the others showed similar sentiments, Sorao chuckled happily. "Wow, gee, thanks, everyone... I didn't expect you to be so supportive."

Masashi could hardly say anything at this utterly bewildering sight. Somehow, Sorao had saved himself from censure with reasons that sounded plausible enough to get the others to believe him. Even with that account, Masashi found it hard to accept, and yet, he had no proof that Sorao was lying about it. And much as he wanted to show that Sorao was hiding something else, there was something of greater importance: the culprit's identity. Sorao had shown himself to be innocent with his explanation. It was almost impressive how Sorao had made himself free from suspicion, as if he had been used to this kind of thing already.

"Anyway... Now that you know of my mistakes," Sorao said, "there's something that we all should talk about."

"What is it?" Sister Hikari said.

"The rope, of course. Even though I didn't do the crime, I still had my hands on it in the end, didn't I?" Sorao answered. "Well, when I said earlier that it'd been an unlucky coincidence that I'd been seen with it, I meant it, really."

"You did?" Masashi said, growing more and more confused.

"Yeah. Once you reminded me of the rope, I remembered the whole thing exactly," Sorao answered. "You see, after I passed by Kumi and headed into my room, I relaxed for a bit before thinking to take a short walk. But imagine how shocked I was when I found a rope lying around near my door."

"The rope... was lying on the ground?" Sister Hikari said, puzzled.

"Yeah. It was on a spot right below the aperture," Sorao said. "Anyway, I was interested in it and thought to look at it a bit more, so I dragged it into my room."

"Th-That must've been wh-when I saw you…" Hikari said.

Sorao chuckled. "Well, thanks to your witness account, we remembered to account for this very important clue."

"More importantly, did you find anything important on the rope?" Futaba asked.

Sorao widened his smile. "You bet I did. Much of the rope was covered with pink glitter. Most likely, the killer unwittingly left glitter on the rope while climbing it, since we know for sure the killer had pink glitter on their hands."

"But how does that explain why the rope was there?" Haruka asked. "Thinking about it really makes my head hurt!"

"I think that we can't answer that until we figure out which deck the rope trick was used on," Mari said. "If Masashi's theory is correct, then it means that the rope was used. But all he had wrong was the location."

"Well, the third deck isn't where the rope was tied," Masashi said. "After all, the only people who'd benefit from it are those who say they were on the fourth deck all along. But not only were Hikari, Abraham, and Red Mask on the fourth deck during the body discovery announcement, but they also couldn't have known about which carriage Atsushi was in."

"And it wouldn't make any sense for Maiha or Arashi to use it," Mari said. "After all, they each were on the second deck by themselves. If they had wanted to go to the hidden room, they could've simply walked down to the third deck."

"Exactly. The addlepated and hot-headed commoner and I are innocent," Maiha answered.

"Th-Then the killer didn't hang it from the second deck?" Hikari said.

"Hah! Of course not!" Murphy answered. "There's no balcony in the servants' quarters or the storeroom in the second deck to access the aperture. Instead, it's blocked off by walls. There's only a window to look through in the servants' quarters. And as they've just said, it'd be utterly pointless!"

"Then.. the only other deck where the rope could be hung from," Masashi concluded, "is the main deck. The deck has railing around the aperture as well."

"That sounds about right," Sorao said, nodding along. "And now that I think about it, the killer used the rope trick to make a fake alibi. With that knowledge..." Sorao looked Masashi right in the eye. "Do you know who it was that was near the main deck and claims to have an alibi?"

It was then that Masashi knew exactly whom Sorao was referring to.

_No way... He couldn't be... But that's the only answer!_

Much as it pained him to say it, there was no other person who fit the requirements. But at long last, his reasoning had led him to a certain suspect, and he could not stop until that person confessed.

"Well, who is this killer that we've been hearing so much about?" Futaba asked.

Taking in a deep breath and readying himself, Masashi pointed at the culprit.

"The only one who comes into mind," he said, "is you, Haruka."

The whole group gasped as they stared at the clown, who looked the most surprised of them all.

"Wait… me?" Haruka pointed at herself, puzzled. "H-Hang on! Are you saying I'm the killer?! Th-There's no way you mean it! Th-This is a joke, isn't it? Y-Yeah, that has to be it!" She then put up a wide smile that nonetheless looked rather forced in this situation. "Y-You really had me going there for a moment!"

"Y-Yeah! That has to be a joke!" Arashi said, still recovering from the shock of hearing the accusation.

"I-It is a joke, right, Sir Masashi?" Kumi said, shaking a bit.

"Sorry, but what I've said is no joke," Masashi said. "The killer can only be you, Haruka."

Haruka then gasped once more, her expression worried. "B-But why?! C-Can't you see that I'm only a clown?!"

Masashi shook his head sternly. "Haruka, you said that you were in the storeroom in the second deck's port hallway, and the only other place you could've gone without being seen was the main deck. That's the reason why you're the main suspect now."

"B-But that doesn't mean I did it!" Haruka said, her voice full of unease and anxiety. "I… I swear to you, I was in the storeroom the whole time!"

"That's what you claim, but you have no one to back you up, commoner," Maiha said. "And not only did you know about that foolish commoner's foolish hunt, but you also saw Atsushi go into the spade carriage."

"And come to think of it… the storeroom has plenty of rope in it," Masashi said. "You didn't need to stow any rope in the hidden room, then. All you needed to stow was the tablecloth."

"Wh-What kind of accusation is this?!" Haruka said. "Are you really going to just listen to that guy, who's pretty suspicious?!"

"Well, if you think I'm lying about what I found on the rope," Sorao said, "we can always just ask Captain Monokuma to bring it. Right, Captain?"

"Yep! If it's important to the case, I can bring any item from the ship for examination!" Monokuma answered.

"P-Please! You have to listen to me!" Haruka said beseechingly. "I-I didn't do it! I mean... there's a good reason I'm not the culprit!"

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"All right, so if I'd been the killer, I'd have had to hang the rope from the main deck, right?" Haruka said. "But **Arashi was at the servants' quarters**, wasn't he?"

"I was!" Arashi answered confidently.

"What does that have to do with all this?" Maiha asked.

"Well, if I'd actually done it, the ruse would've been found out immediately!" Haruka replied. "After all, **there's a window** in the quarters! If Arashi had looked outside at any point, **he would've seen the rope!**"

"And that's why you can't be the culprit?" Mari asked.

"**I know it sounds silly, but…**" Haruka set her hand on her chest. "I'm definitely not the culprit!"

"Yeah, that's right!" Arashi said energetically. "Haruka can't be the killer!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Red Curtain**

**No, that's wrong!**

"No, Haruka. Arashi definitely wouldn't have seen the rope," Masashi said. "After all, there was something blocking his point of view."

"Wh-What?" Haruka said, eyeing him nervously. "Wh-What are you talking about?"

"In the servants' quarters, there indeed is a window," Masashi answered, "but that window right now is covered with a red curtain. Apparently, Atsushi had Faye put it up a few days ago."

"Oh, that's right!" Faye said. "I didn't really like to do it, but he forced me to do it as part of 'punishment'."

"And I bet that you had already taken that into account," Masashi said, "so you knew that anyone inside wouldn't have seen the rope! And with that—" Masashi pointed at Haruka again. "—your claim that you would've been seen was nothing but a lie!"

"Ah… _Aaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Haruka exclaimed as she reeled back.

"Lady Haruka!" Kumi cried out, holding onto his teddy bear for support.

"Um… I…" Haruka said as her smile faded. She must have prepared that excuse in the unfortunate event that she were ever accused, but now that even that had been demolished, she looked more and more helpless.

"I'm sorry, but you have to be the culprit," Masashi said. "You knew about Kumi's fairy hunting and could have framed him with the glitter. And you also saw which carriage Atsushi headed into."

"That's true… She knew everything that the culprit needed to know to frame Kumi," Mari said.

"You likely had found out the hidden room sometime earlier," Masashi continued. "Of course, I can't prove it, but since Kumi was standing before the front door the whole time, you couldn't have gone through that way. The only other way available was the hidden passageway!"

Haruka flinched yet again as the others murmured about this. This was good; the group's opinion was starting to sway in his favor.

"Then are you saying that after we saw her go into the port hallway," Futaba said, "she was not actually searching for nonexistent fairies? She was actually tying the rope to the railway in the main deck?"

Masashi nodded. "You both saw her go into the hallway, but neither of you actually saw her go into the storeroom and stay there. You only assumed so because you thought she had no reason to go to the main deck."

"Hey, so… after she went down to the third deck, when did she start using the glitter?" Tanjiro asked.

"I reckon she did it when she arrived at the playroom the first time," Masashi answered. "After all, the yellow mushroom there was covered with glitter, and she needed to move it to open up the hidden door."

"Then after she was done with the murder…" Sister Hikari said. "She had to climb back up, right?"

"Indeed. We found her near the entrance to the port hallway when the body discovery announcement played," Haruyuki said. "If she hadn't climbed back up, she would've been found in the third deck instead."

"Aah… Aah…" Haruka could only say as it became clearer and clearer how she had tricked them all.

"And once she climbed back up to the main deck," Masashi said, "she simply pulled the rope back up and—"

"_**Shut up, shut up, shut up!**_"

Once again, a loud voice rang through the courtroom, but surprisingly enough, it was not Haruka but Arashi that objected. He looked beyond angry, both his fists tightened.

"You… How dare you still insist that she's the killer?!" Arashi yelled. "Can't you just give it up already?!"

"But… Arashi, all the evidence shows she's the killer," Masashi said as calmly as he could.

"Shut up! I don't care about that!" Arashi responded, not growing any cooler. "There's a reason that she can't be the killer, and I'm gonna show you!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: Arashi Seiya**

"You keep saying that Haruka's the killer…" Arashi said. "But that's impossible!

"If she were the killer, then her hands would've been covered with glitter, right?

"Sure, she'd already left a bunch of glitter on some other things, but that doesn't matter!

"She should've had some glitter left on her hands!

"But her hands **were clean!** No glitter on them at all!"

"True, when you guys found her, I don't think you found glitter on her hands," Masashi said. "But doesn't that mean she had simply washed it off?"

"No, that's wrong!" Arashi said.

"There's no way she could've washed it off!

"The restrooms are in the **starboard hallway**, not the port hallway!"

"If she'd gone to the women's restroom, the people in the dining room would've noticed her!

"And if she'd cleaned her hands in the pool in the main deck, we would've noticed the smell!

"And there's **no way for her to clean her hands** in the port hallway, so I have to be right!

"Now take back what you said about Haruka!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen: Vending Machine**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"No, that's not right, Arashi," Masashi said. "There was a way for her to get rid of the remaining glitter on her hands. In fact, I saw it when I helped you during the investigation."

"What?! What are you talking about?!" Arashi yelled back.

"Remember when I got you that soda pop?" Masashi answered. "I got it from the vending machine in the port hallway."

"Ah! And that vending machine sells many kinds of drinks, right?" Faye said.

"Yep. Including water," Masashi added.

Arashi gasped. "Then.. you're saying she washed off the glitter with a bottle of water?!"

"It looks like it," Masashi said. "It doesn't cost anything to get a drink, so there was nothing stopping her from getting one."

"No... No _waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!_" Arashi exclaimed, only to fall silent and make no further argument. Meanwhile, Haruka grimaced as more and more of her plot was exposed.

"Hey, I was wondering…" It was Mari. "There's a stream of water flowing in the garden on the third deck. Why didn't she just wash her hands there?"

"When we think about the circumstances of her plan, it's pretty obvious why she didn't do it there," Sorao said. "Remember, her plan relied on no one seeing her and the rope. It was pretty risky, so at every part of her plan, she had to move quickly. If she'd spent more time in the garden, she would've risked being caught."

"Still, it is quite odd that she left glitter on the rope from climbing it," Haruyuki said.

"The glitter was only meant to frame the foolish commoner," Maiha said. "She had no good reason to leave glitter behind on the rope. I suspect that she forgot to account for this and realized it only after she was done climbing."

"So that was her mistake?" Mari said.

"Yep. If she'd worn gloves, she would've avoided it," Sorao said. "But… as we all know, she didn't and still doesn't."

"W-Wait, hang on!" Haruka protested, raising her plain ungloved hands. "Even if that were true, h-how would you explain the rope?! Wh-Why was it on the fourth deck?!"

Masashi thought for a moment. They had not talked about this, but he could now see how the glitter on the rope came into play. "I think it goes back to your error. Even though you easily got rid of the glitter on your hands, the same couldn't be said for the glitter on the rope."

"A-And?" Haruka said. "I-If I'd been the killer, why wouldn't I have just left the rope on the main deck?"

"You would've been caught, I reckon," Masashi answered. "Once the investigation began, we would've found the rope, and with the location, we would've figured out your scheme. After all, you were the only one near the main deck."

"So that's why she couldn't hide the rope in the storeroom, either," Mari concluded.

"But if that's the case, what did she do with the rope in the end?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Since it was pretty incriminating evidence," Masashi said, "she would've naturally tried to hide it. So she had to come up with a makeshift solution."

Haruka chuckled nervously, her smile growing unconvincing. "S-Solution? I-I'm sorry, but I'm really bad with problems! I wasn't the top student in my math class!"

"Just tell us what this solution Haruka used is already!" Futaba said.

_All right, all right, no need to boss me_ _around_... Masashi thought, trying not to be annoyed by her attitude. _Let's see...__ Sorao found the rope in the fourth deck, when he was about to go on a walk…_ _So what did she have in mind?_

"Oh, I've got it!" Masashi said after a few seconds. "If she wanted to hide it, naturally, she would hide in a place that no one would think to check."

"Ah, the hidden room, right?" Sister Hikari said.

Masashi shook his head. "No. Remember, at that point, she couldn't access it without being seen. Kumi was in the hallway, and it would've looked really damning on her if she'd passed by him while holding the rope."

Kumi cocked his head, showing a mixture of unbelief and bewilderment. "Th-Then are you saying that Lady Haruka used some kind of spell to make it disappear?!"

"No. Sorry, Kumi, but there was no need for magic," Masashi replied. "The only other room that no one else would check… is her room, of course."

"Aah!" Haruka shrieked again.

"But how did she plan to hide it in her room?" Futaba asked. "She would've passed by us if she'd tried to take the rope with her."

"The same way she snuck to the third deck," Masashi answered. "She used the apertures to her advantage. All the main apertures line up with one another. Thus, she simply threw the rope down the aperture, and it landed on the fourth deck."

"Then that's why the rope was found there!" Abraham said.

"So… once Haruka threw the rope down," Tanjiro said, "she would've had to go to the fourth deck to put it in her room, right?"

"Yep. Too bad I found it first," Sorao answered. "I can't blame her, really. There was nothing she could do to stop me, and it was a pretty risky move in the first place."

"But come to think of it, wouldn't dropping it have made a bit of noise?" Faye asked. "People on the fourth deck should have at least heard it."

"Um... I was in my room, but more specifically, I was taking a shower!" Red Mask answered. "So that's why I didn't hear it!"

"I-I was meditating for a bit, so I was trying to forget all about any noises I heard..." Hikari weakly answered.

"As for me, I was reading something," Abraham said. "Now that I think about it, I think there was a noise like that. But since I had heard similar noises earlier, I had assumed that something had merely collided with the ship. That's why I didn't bother mentioning it earlier."

"Yeah, same for me," Sorao said. "Well, I wasn't reading, but you know what I mean."

"So it's clear now why none of the fourth deck denizens bothered to investigate the noise that the rope made upon landing on the fourth deck!" Masashi said. "All she had to do now was rush back down and stow it in her room."

"But the body discovery announcement played before she could even head down to the fourth deck," Mari said, "so it was too late for her."

"Hey, come to think of it... If Haruka's the culprit," Sorao said, "then doesn't that mean she's the one who framed Kumi?"

Kumi gasped. "N-No way... No way Lady Haruka's an evil witch!"

"Come to think of it..." Masashi said. "During the investigation, Haruka said something that I found to be a bit interesting."

* * *

_"By the way… if you're going to talk with Kumi," Haruka said a bit more seriously, "you should be a bit careful."_

_"Careful?" Masashi said, puzzled._

_"Yeah… While calming him down earlier, I don't know why, but I sensed something… weird about him," Haruka answered, giving the door a sidelong glance. "He's all right now, but… I had the feeling that he was hiding something from me."_

_"Huh… That is weird," Masashi replied, wondering what this meant. "All right, I'll be careful."_

* * *

"Originally, I thought there might be something that Kumi was not telling us," Masashi said, "but now that I think about it, Haruka... you were trying to make me suspect Kumi, weren't you?"

"_Aah__!_" Haruka squealed.

"No... No way... Sh-She said that?" Kumi said, trembling.

Sorao laughed for a bit. "Man, if she truly tried to frame you, then it means all those words about how horrible I am for blaming you... _were nothing more than empty words meant to make you trust her._"

"I... I... I... _I can't believe this!_" Kumi screamed as if he were the true culprit behind this. A few seconds, like Arashi, he too fell silent and had nothing to say.

As more and more of the group looked convinced that Haruka had done it, Arashi and Kumi glanced at their friend, beseeching her to give them all an answer already. It was funny that only minutes ago, Kumi had been in the same spot, but this time, Masashi was sure that they were on the right track here, and it was all due to her one little blunder. Meanwhile, Haruka looked down at her podium, her expression dreary, sweat running down her brow. It was such a travesty to see the gleeful clown like this, but this was the conclusion that Masashi had reached, and he must stick with it.

"Haruka?" Masashi said. "Will you confess now?"

"N… No! No, I won't confess!" she responded. "I… I'm not the killer…"

"But there's nothing else to talk about, right?" Mari said. "After all, we've uncovered your scheme."

"M-My scheme...? N-No... You have it wrong! I-I didn't do it!" Haruka turned to Kumi and Arashi for help. "P-Please... help me show them I didn't do it!"

But even her two friends were no longer there for her. With her betrayal, she had bereft them of any willingness to defend her to the very end.

"Wh-Why...?" she said.

"Oh? Shocked? Well, were you not fucking listening earlier?" Abraham said, arms crossed. "Think back to what the damn bear said to that stupid boy."

* * *

"_Don't you realize it now?" Monokuma said. "In the class trial, the one who is best to defend you is you alone, my boy! Sure, you can turn toward who you think are your friends, but when they inevitably forsake you, you have only yourself as your defense!"_

* * *

"Grrk!" Haruka yelped, her expression turning more and more warped.

Much as he did not want to do it, he was nearly certain that Haruka was the killer. He hated having to see her like this, especially when she was usually joyful and blithesome, but there was nothing that he could do about the choice that she had made tonight.

"Puhuhuhuhu! It seems that the climax of our class trial has come!" Monokuma said. "And just to remind you... you know what's at stake here, right?"

"Y-Yeah..." Haruka mumbled, clutching her left arm. "I… I have to show them… I'm innocent... for my life... my life... my life..."

"H-Haruka?" Masashi said, worried about her as her expression darkened.

"I... I... I..."

But Haruka then gasped and turned toward Masashi, a sudden look of determination on her face.

"Ah!" she said. "I-I see it now... I see it!"

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Masashi said.

"Well, I'll have you know... there's a _very_ good reason why I can't be the culprit!" Haruka declared.

"Huh? You're _still_ not giving up?" Sayua said, more irked than outraged.

"O-Of course not! Let me explain!" Haruka answered, her voice containing a hint of hope. "I… I've just realized that you conveniently left out something very important in your explanation!"

"And what is that?" Masashi asked, confused. Whatever had he failed to account for?

"How I got the glitter, of course!" Haruka said. "And before you say 'you obviously got it from the shop', keep in mind… the glitter that both Kumi and the killer used is pink!"

"And?" Maiha asked. "What's your point, foolish clown?"

"See, that's the thing: _pink glitter wasn't offered for sale in the shop until tonight!_" Haruka answered much more confidently. "Murphy, you were in the shop, right? Am I right?"

Murphy sighed. "Yeah, you are. The thief girl took the last can of yellow glitter an hour before nighttime, and the captain then came with a new box of glitter. The glitter, though, was of a different color."

"And since you were in the shop all along," Haruka said, "you must've seen who took the pink glitter, right?"

"Yeah. It was Kumi and Sorao," Murphy answered.

"Captain Monokuma, had pink glitter ever been offered on the shop?" Haruka asked.

"Nope! Only tonight did I start selling it for the first time!" Monokuma answered. "And for your information, I had told no one that I'd sell pink glitter!"

Haruka giggled as a bright smile reappeared on her face. "Can't you see it? Tonight, not even once did I go to the shop and get myself pink glitter! _And without pink glitter, I couldn't have done it!_"

"Aah... _Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Masashi exclaimed, reeling back at her counterargument.

"Th-That's a pretty good point…" Tanjiro said.

"Yeah, I can't disagree with her on that," Faye said.

"I must admit that for a foolish clown, she presents a good point," Maiha said.

"N-No way…" Masashi mumbled as he saw that the group now appeared to agree with Haruka. Though he had exposed how she had crafted her fake alibi, he had once again forgotten to account for one thing, and because of that, she still had a chance to persuade the others of her innocence. And moreover, since Monokuma had never told Haruka about the difference in color of the newly stocked glitter, it must be that Haruka had not planned to use the different colors to her advantage; the plan would have worked just as well if Kumi had used yellow glitter for his hunting as she must have originally intended. But thanks to Monokuma's choice in restocking, she had stumbled upon one last defense to make.

Haruka smiled a relieved smile as she stood with arms akimbo. "I've got to admit, Masashi, your theory really had me going there! But now that I've shown it can't be right, I can't help but laugh, you know?"

"So you're not the killer, right?!" Arashi said excitedly.

"And you're not a witch, right?!" Kumi added. It seemed that her last defense was enough to return to the two boys their trust in her.

"Yep! I'm a clown ready to make a fool of herself anywhere and any time to make you laugh! That's all I am!" Haruka then pointed at Masashi. "So can't you see, Masashi?! You've been chasing after the wrong person! Since I couldn't have gotten the pink glitter, there's no way I could've done it!"

Haruyuki chuckled, one of the few not taken aback by her rebuttal. "All of that sounds right... that is, if there truly were no point in which you could have gotten it. Perhaps like last time, there is something we are forgetting."

"Th-There isn't!" Haruka insisted. "If you think I'm wrong… then _prove it!_"

Masashi looked around and saw his classmates' faces. Though a few of them looked certain that she was the killer, there was still a hint of doubt shown by the others. That was the last obstacle that he needed to remove if he wanted them all to live, and the only way to do so was to show how the killer had pulled it off.

"I'll prove it, all right," Masashi said boldly. "Then this class trial will come to an end!"

* * *

**Argument Armament: Haruka Minami**

"I'm not the culprit!"

_I'm sorry, Haruka, but you are!_

"There's no way I did it!"

_But we've just shown how you pulled it off!_

"Please… You have to believe me!"

_I wish I could, but all the evidence suggests otherwise!_

"It wasn't me! It was someone else!"

_Sorry, but I don't think so..._

"Please trust me!"

_I want to, but..._

"I'm a clown! I'd never hurt a fly!"

_Unfortunately, you've done more than that!_

"Don't vote for me!"

_But if we don't, we'll all die!_

"I didn't kill Atsushi, believe me!"

_Believe me, I don't want to think so as well, but…_

"There's no way… There's no way I'm the killer!"

_You keep saying that, but..._

"I'd never kill anyone!"

_That's what I thought, too!_

"Killing others isn't what a clown would do!"

_But if something else were at stake, you'd definitely think twice!_

"Please… just stop!"

_Sorry, Haruka…_

"**At no point did I go to the shop! In that case, how did I get my hands on the pink glitter?!"**

Masashi remembered one moment when she had her hands on it. And indeed, she must have gotten it then. He readied himself and gave her the answer that she thought she would never hear:

"**You stole it from Kumi's satchel!"**

"Wh-_WHAT?!_" Haruka yelled out, arms raised. The rest of the group looked similarly confused and shocked at his answer.

"At one point, you helped Kumi put on his pink glitter on his palms," Masashi said, recalling what the storyteller had told him. "You applied a can of glitter, and supposedly, you put his two cans back into his satchel. But at that point, you must've stolen the can that still had glitter in it."

"Wait… Come to think of it, Kumi said that both his cans were empty now," Mari said. "If he's innocent, then at no point should he have used the second one."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot all about that!" Sayua said.

"_Argh!_" Haruka exclaimed as she clenched a fist, her face showing more desperation.

"So Haruka… stole the second can without his knowing it?" Faye asked.

"The cans were about the size of one's palm," Sorao said, "so for Haruka, it wasn't too hard to smuggle it out. All she had to do was pretend to put it back in Kumi's satchel. Then she could quickly hide the can on her person, and he'd be none the wiser."

"And... I never checked my satchel during the hunt!" Kumi whimpered. "Then… Lady Haruka… really stole from me?"

Masashi nodded. "Since she used the can as part of framing you, it's no wonder that it's empty now."

"But if Haruka took the can," Futaba said, "then the can should still be on her, yes? But why does the boy have it now?"

"Naturally, once Haruka used the can, she needed to sneak it back onto his person," Masashi answered. "She needed to frame Kumi, after all, and putting the can there neatly explained how Kumi would have used it if he had been the killer."

"But at no point did she meet up with Kumi after she left with Arashi, right?" Tanjiro said.

"True, during the third round, she didn't have the opportunity to put it back into his satchel," Masashi answered before looking right back at the frightened clown. "But an opportunity arose… after the investigation began."

"After it began… Oh!" Faye said. "Didn't Haruka go to the lounge with Kumi to calm him down?"

"Eep!" Haruka squealed as the others realized that her deeds had not been so innocent as they had thought.

"Kumi! Did you see Haruka touch your satchel?" Masashi asked.

Kumi nervously nodded. "I… I wasn't thinking too clearly then, so I think she could've put it in my satchel…"

"Then it truly was possible!" Futaba said, shocked.

"And the empty can now back in Kumi's satchel," Masashi finished, "the trick was complete! Kumi didn't understand why the second can of glitter was empty, but regardless, he still had it on him. Everyone would then think that he had used it as some point! You never needed to go to the shop at all for the glitter!"

"Ah… Ah… _AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!_" Haruka shrieked.

Once she was done, she stood there silently, all willingness to fight for her life now gone. It was as if she were a dead woman walking, even though the bright colors that she wore showed nothing but life.

"Well… I suppose I had better go over the case once more," Masashi said. "That way, everyone here understands full well what you have done, Haruka."

She said nothing once more, life slowly disappearing from her eyes. The more he looked at her, the worse he felt that he must do it, but at this point, there was no turning back.

* * *

**Closing Argument**

"First, yesterday night, the killer was there when Kumi suggested that they go hunting for fairies during the night. Because of Sorao's suggestion, Arashi suggested that he use glitter, and so the plan was that Kumi get glitter the next night. Knowing this, the killer, who had plans to go on the Haunted Woods AR ride, later prepared for the murder. They took a knife from the kitchen as well as a tablecloth, and they hid the tablecloth in the hidden room. The killer thought that no one had known about the hidden room, so they thought that it was safe to keep it there. Next, after asking Monokuma and hearing from him that the carriages would be used in the AR ride, the killer then wrote Atsushi, the intended victim, a note instructing him to be alone on the ride during the third round.

"Later, after the killer rode the ride twice to see what it was like, the killer made sure to stay behind to see which carriage Atsushi would go into. Once they saw that he sat at the spade carriage, the killer left the room with Sorao and met up with Kumi and Arashi, both of whom were waiting outside the merry-go-round room. After Kumi got two cans of pink glitter, the killer helped Kumi put a can's worth of glitter on his palms. Afterwards, the killer put both cans back in the satchel, but unbeknown to Kumi and Arashi, the killer actually snatched one of the cans and hid it on their person. The size of the can was small enough to make this doable.

"Once the killer and Arashi headed up to the second deck, the killer headed to the storeroom alone. The killer was spotted by Futaba and Haruyuki in the dining room, and since they did not see the killer come back, it would look as if the culprit had been in the storeroom all along. Once in the storeroom, the killer got some rope and headed over to the main deck with it. Afterwards, the killer tied the rope to the railing by the wide aperture. Because the window in the servants' quarters was blocked by a red curtain put there by Faye days ago, Arashi, who was in that room, would not see the rope. Through the apertures, the killer then made their way down to the garden on the third deck.

"At this point, the killer had to hurry, and so they rushed over to the playroom. Now, it was time to frame Kumi for the crime, as the killer knew that Kumi was by himself. The killer put the stolen glitter on their palms and opened up the hidden door. Because the glitter was on their palms and not their fingers, the killer left nothing behind on the buttons themselves.

"Once inside the hidden room, the killer donned the tablecloth and headed over to the other end of the hidden passageway. There, the killer listened carefully for the music to change; the killing needed to happen during the part in which the carriages spun, and our sight was covered by bugs. When the music changed, the killer pressed the button, which opened the door for only a minute. The killer rushed over to the control panel, and there, they pressed the button to open all the carriage doors. None of us saw this, and the music was so loud that we could not hear the doors open.

"Afterwards, the killer, knowing that Atsushi was in the spade carriage, rushed over to that carriage. They then entered the carriage and found Atsushi, whereafter they stabbed him a few times with the kitchen knife. The tablecloth protected the killer from the blood splatter, though one drop of it landed outside the carriage. Once sensing that he was dead, the killer left the bloodied tablecloth behind, and the knife had enough glitter on the haft. The killer rushed over to the control panel. After all, it was only a matter of time before the spinning carriages part of the ride stopped. The killer shut all the doors and hurried back into the hidden door before it closed.

"Now the killer had to go back to the main deck as quickly as possible. The killer rushed back to the garden. But after they climbed back up and untied the rope, the killer noticed their one mistake: they had unwittingly left glitter on the rope. But first, the killer needed to deal with the remaining glitter on their hands. So the killer headed over to the vending machine in the port hallway of the second deck, and the killer used a water bottle to wash off the glitter.

"But there was still the rope to take care of. The killer could not very well leave it there or in the storeroom, since if it were discovered, the ruse would be discovered. The killer soon came up with a crude solution and thought to hide it in their room back on the fourth deck. The killer threw down the rope through the apertures, and it landed on the fourth deck's garden.

"The killer then began their rush to the fourth deck. But it was too late. Sorao had found it by accident and decided to take it back into his room, during which he was seen by Hikari. And before the killer could even make it to the dining room, the body discovery announcement played, which prevented the killer from completing their task.

"But to the killer's surprise, no one apparently saw anything suspicious on the fourth deck. The rope had somehow disappeared. Setting that aside, the killer had one more task: sneak the empty glitter can back onto Kumi. During the investigation, the killer took Kumi to the lounge, claiming to want to calm him down. But in truth, the killer used the opportunity to put the empty can back into the satchel. Kumi was too distraught to notice at the time. Once the can was back inside, the trick was complete!"

Masashi pointed at the culprit, who stood there overwhelmed. "And that was the scheme that you had come up with to kill Atsushi and get away with it! And you would have gotten away with it if it hadn't been for your one mistake! Isn't that right, **Haruka Minami, the Ultimate Clown?!**"

The others looked at Haruka, amazed that she had gone to great lengths to win this killing game. But now that everything was clear, all chances of her winning were now gone.

"H-Haruka…?" Arashi asked, tears welling in his eyes.

"I... I can't believe it..." Kumi said with like eyes as he cuddled his teddy bear.

"Well?" Haruyuki said. "Are you willing to confess now?"

At long last, Haruka looked back up at her fellow students, and this time, there was no anger or shock on her face. Instead, there was nothing but sheer resignation, as if she had lost the energy to fight back.

"Yeah… I guess there's no point now in denying it…" Haruka sighed, frowning a dreadful frown. "You're right… I did it… I'm the one that killed Atsushi Morokuzu."

"It... It's all true, then!" Sister Hikari said.

"Holy fucking shit…" Sayua said.

Even though the killer had confessed, there was no mirth to find in this ending. It was now certain that one of them had taken someone's life, and the killer would soon be given her just deserts. In this courtroom, there would only be despair waiting for them.

"All right, then! It seems we've come to a conclusion at last!" It was Monokuma, the only one who shed no tears at this turn of events. "Now, then, let's get on with the voting. Remember, if you don't vote, you'll be punished, so you'd better do it! It's… _Voting Time!_"

Once he was done, all the students looked down as the panels on their podiums turned on. Masashi's panel now showed eighteen squares showing the students' faces. Atsushi's square had already been crossed out with a red X. Clicking on a square showed a fuller picture of the person and showed the name below it.

_This is it!_ Masashi thought. _Time to end this class trial!_

Though hesitating for a moment, in the end, he chose Haruka's portrait.

"The voting has finished!" Monokuma announced. "Let us see the results!"

Afterwards, the room's monitors turned on, all showing that Haruka had gotten the most votes. It was not surprising at all, and yet, seeing her face up there only greatened the woe hanging in the air.

Monokuma chortled as he set his paws over his mouth. "Who will be chosen as the blackened?! Will you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one?!"

The panels then changed to show a roulette wheel showing all eighteen students' faces. The wheel spun and spun until it stopped at Haruka's pocket, whereafter a celebratory jingle played, and confetti fell from the roof.

At long last, the class trial was over.

* * *

**Here it is at last! The conclusion of the class trial! As far as I can tell, you all thought that Musical Rantaro was the killer, but nope, it turns out to be Clown Tsumugi instead. I pretty much expected that Sorao would be seen as the most suspicious person, given his shady behavior and unusually blithe attitude, but even before this chapter, I think it was still possible to figure out that before this chapter that Haruka was the killer (her position and where the rope could have been used are some of the hints).**

**Anyway, the aftermath of the class trial is in the next chapter, as well as the execution, and including it in this chapter would make it too long, obviously, so I'll give my thoughts on Haruka then.**


	14. The Woodland King Comes (10)

"Puhuhuhu!" Monokuma cackled as the students scattered throughout the courtroom. "Yep! It's no surprise at this point, but you guys got it right! The blackened responsible for Atsushi Morokuzu's murder is Haruka Minami!"

Though he had proven it, hearing the truth from Monokuma did not fail to worsen things. The rush of victory that Masashi felt was nowhere as great as the shock and gloom that now dominated the courtroom.

Haruka, the star of the show, listlessly stood not too far from her podium. It would be hardly any exaggeration to say that she looked as if she had lost all energy to move.

"Wh-Why…? Why did you do it?!" Arashi asked, making no effort to hold back the tears. "Why did you have to go kill Atsushi?!"

"Y-Yeah! I thought we were all friends, Lady Haruka!" Kumi said. "Y-You're too kind to be an evil witch... so did an evil ghost possess you?!"

Haruyuki chuckled. "No, I am rather certain that everything that she did was on her own free will. The conviction that she had in trying to hide her guilt... was all too true."

"Yeah... that's right," the pink-haired clown whimpered. "Trust me, I didn't want to do it! I liked you guys a lot! But… in the end, I decided I had to do it!"

"What made you think that you would find more profit in killing than remaining idle here?" Futaba asked.

"Well… I had to find out…" Haruka answered. "I had to find out what happened to my mother."

Masashi raised his eyes. "Wait, don't tell me…"

Haruka nodded slightly. "Yes… I can never forget what I saw on my motive video."

Most of the students gasped. Monokuma had given them their motive videos so as to pressure them to kill, and Futaba, Atsushi, and Mari had destroyed them, the reasoning being that it would help them forget about what they had seen. But here they were, standing in the courtroom and looking at a killer among them. There was no doubt that Monokuma's plan to push one of them to kill had worked all too well.

"In my motive video, I saw my mother," Haruka explained, a little life returning to her voice. "She… She along with my grandfather was the one that got me into performing. They both taught me early on the basics of the art. I don't know what I'd be doing if it hadn't been for her. That's why... when I saw the video... I was utterly aghast."

"I see…" Haruyuki said, rubbing his chin. "So you killed to find out what happened to her. That is rather understandable."

"Hell no! Don't you try to make us sympathize with her!" Sayua said, raising her right hand in anger. "That bitch tried to kill us all! Why the hell should I feel sorry for her?"

"Y-You don't understand!" Haruka answered pathetically. "I tried to forget about it, I really did! But the only thing I could do while trapped here is performing, and I couldn't stop thinking about my mother! I... I'm sorry, but I can't be my usual self while knowing that something bad might have happened to her! I already lost my grandfather after he passed away about a year ago, so I didn't want to think that I might've lost my mother as well! There was only one way to find out for sure, so..."

"You chose family over a group of individuals whom you hardly know," Haruyuki finished.

"When you put it that way, it seemed like the reasonable thing to do..." Tanjiro said. "It's pretty normal to worry about your own flesh and blood."

_Right..._ Masashi thought as he recalled watching his own motive video, which featured Keiko, his one and only little sister. He would do anything to save her, but killing was out of the question, or at least, that was what he would say under these circumstances.

"Hey, there's something I want to ask." It was Sorao, who looked relatively unbothered by this turn of events. "Why did you choose Atsushi as your target? Why not Kumi or Arashi?"

"Oh, come on, is that one a mystery?" Sayua said, growing bored. "The guy was a bastard, wasn't he?"

"So Haruka did this because he had angered her?" Faye said.

"Actually… no," Haruka answered. "He did insult me like that, yes, but that wasn't the reason I chose him. I simply thought he was the easiest one to isolate and kill."

"You mean with that note?" Masashi said.

"Yeah… He was all giddy about knowledge or something like that," Haruka said. "I thought that if I promised him a secret, he'd do whatever I said. And even though I knew I would essentially kill the rest of you if I succeeded, I still couldn't go through with killing Kumi or Arashi with my own two hands. And, well, you know the rest…"

"Did you truly think that you would get away with it?" Maiha asked, looking at her with a hint of disgust on her face.

Haruka lowered her head, sounding as if weary of life. "Yeah… I discovered the hidden room a few days ago, and I later came up with the scheme… Though I hesitated for a moment upon stabbing him and hearing Atsushi scream, in the end… I needed to go through with it. I had no time for regrets. I had to finish my plan."

"The odds were nearly in your favor," Mari pointed out. "The only reason that you were caught was the glitter on your hands."

"If you had remembered to rid your hands of the glitter earlier... your plan would've been perfect," Masashi said. It must have been luck that Haruka had made this one small but significant mistake.

Haruyuki chuckled. "It's a fitting end, to some extent. She tried to frame a good friends of hers, only to end up being caught. Speaking of that, why did you try to frame him, anyway?"

Haruka glanced away from Kumi nervously. "Well… I don't like to admit it, but Sorao was right. Much as I like him, Kumi is a bit weird… That's why I thought you guys would naturally suspect him if I framed him. I didn't want to do it, really! But… I needed the class trial to end quickly, and Kumi and Arashi were the only ones that I knew well enough…"

Sorao sighed. "Man… And to think, we almost fell for it. You certainly fooled me enough to get me to accuse the nitwit."

Haruka said nothing as the others darkened their gaze at one another. With how the class had almost voted for Kumi, Haruka had been spot on with her line of thinking.

"Puhuhuhuhu! With those reactions of yours, I can't wait to see how you'll react to _that!_"

It was Monokuma, whom Masashi had admittedly forgotten about. He still sat on his throne, looking down at the rest of them.

"As you all know, as part of the rules, since you have voted correctly," Monokuma said, "only the blackened will be executed! Say your last words right now, because we're all itching to see justice delivered!"

Masashi froze upon hearing Monokuma's announcement. In a few minutes, they would soon witness another person's murder, all in justice's false name, and there was nothing that they could do to stop this unrighteousness. In this courtroom, Monokuma was king.

Haruka then turned toward the two boys with whom she had spent much time. She first looked at the storyteller. "Kumi… Once again, I'm very sorry I tried to frame you. I... I understand it if you will never forgive me."

"No… No, Lady Haruka…" Kumi said, weeping. "Even if you don't regret what you've done… I forgive you! What you did was bad, but it wasn't truly your fault! It was the killing game that made you do it! So please.. _don't leave me!_"

"Sorry, Kumi… But I have to leave—"

Kumi rushed over from his spot and hugged Haruka, which surprised her and a few others.

"You can't go ahead and die!" Kumi said, sounding like a blubbering mess. "We were going to do so many things together! We were going to have fun once this whole ordeal was over! Don't you want that?!"

"I... I do, really!" Haruka said as tears rushed down from her eyes. "But... our happy ending... wasn't meant to be."

"No... No, please don't say that!" Kumi cried out.

"Kumi… after I'm gone... you'll be sad. I understand that, but please, don't stay like that for too long!" Haruka begged.

"But—"

"I wouldn't be happy if you were sad for the rest of your life!" Haruka added. "As a clown, I want you to be happy! I'd be sad seeing you like this forever!"

"R-Really?"

"Yeah…"

Once the embrace kept going for a few more seconds, Kumi let go and faced her. "I… I promise that I'll keep you alive in my stories! Please, tell me what you want to be!"

"As a clown… maybe I should be a court jester," Haruka suggested. "It's only fitting, right?"

"A-All right… If that's what you want."

Once Kumi hugged her some more, Haruka then faced Arashi, who had watched the scene while utterly stupefied.

"Arashi, I…" Haruka began, only to widen her eyes once Arashi glanced away from her.

"You… _How could you?!_" Arashi said, fists tightly clenched. "How could you go ahead and kill him without thinking about me?!"

"I—"

"I thought you were my friend! After all, you played me your wonderful tricks, and you told me your funny jokes, but…" Arashi clenched his teeth. "You… ended up murdering Atsushi! You didn't care about me at all! You... _You betrayed me!"_

Haruka gasped as she tried to say something in response, but it seemed that she could come up with nothing. Meanwhile, Masashi watched the scene, utterly shocked at what had played out. It was Kumi that Haruka had betrayed, and yet, the two boys' reactions were nothing like what one would expect. On one hand, Kumi forgave her, begging her not to leave, and on the other hand, Arashi, whom Haruka had never even tried to pin the crime on, could hardly care about her reasons behind her murder. What was going on?

_Wait… Is it that…?_ Masashi thought. _I think… it's their nature._

Yes, that was it. Kumi was by nature a kind and thoughtful boy, but Arashi was all over the place in his emotions. And their natures influenced how they would react to betrayal. It was all too clear that Arashi would brook no evil done by those whom he deemed his friends. Even if Haruka had never wronged him personally, Arashi had not the ability to handle this well. It was such an unfortunate aftermath, but there was nothing that Haruka could do now to fix this, and from the looks of her eyes, she too saw this and so said nothing more.

"Well, then, it's time!" Monokuma said. "You've had your time to say goodbye. We don't have all night for this melodrama!"

"Well… The show must go on, I guess," Haruka said, showing nothing but a weary expression, her shoulders slumped.

"Haruka…" Masashi said, a few tears leaving his eyes. Many of the others wept as well, all too aware that this whole thing was unrighteous. "I'm sorry that things have to turn out this way."

She rubbed her tearful eyes. "I'm sorry that I won't be with you guys anymore… I really wish I could spend more time making you happy! But… I guess it's the end of the road here for me."

"Puhuhuhu! Let's get going! And by the way, you all have to watch it!" Monokuma said. "Since this is the first execution of this killing game, it's important that you realize what exactly punishment entails!"

"D-Do we have to?" Faye said.

"'Yes' means 'yes', my darling!" Monokuma answered. "You're free to look away next time—if you're even alive then, that is—but your first time is always important! I want you to remember it and look back fondly as you reminisce!"

"Oh God…" Masashi mumbled, the fear inside him waxing. Meanwhile, Haruka's expression grew starker in its fear, and it was the most painful expression that Masashi had ever seen, and the more time passed, the drearier and gloomier it grew.

"Now, then, I have a special punishment prepared for the Ultimate Clown, Haruka Minami!" Monokuma announced. "Let's give it everything we've got! It's… PUNISHMENT TIME!"

"Well then... Farewell, everyone." Haruka looked back up at the group one last time, and she gave them a slight but ever so sorrowful wave. "I hope the rest of you are lucky enough to escape this nightmare..."

A red button then emerged before the judge, and Monokuma took out a yellow mallet and swung it on the button. All the monitors then lit up and showed a sprite of Haruka. A sprite of Monokuma then came from the left, and as it passed by hers, it grabbed Haruka's sprite and dragged her to the right side.

"GAME OVER," the screen showed. "HARUKA HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY. TIME FOR THE PUNISHMENT!"

* * *

Masashi and the others could only watch as Haruka stood there, her eyes darting here and there. A few seconds later, a great claw flew from the doors that opened behind Haruka's podium, and without any warning, it caught her in the neck. She tried to get it off, but her efforts were no good. As she was dragged from the scene, the force was so great that it knocked off her round red clown nose and her pink wig, which revealed her rather plain nose and her long black hair. Eventually, once the claw reached a lone dark room, it let go of Haruka, who fell and fell until she landed on the saddle of a mechanical animal that looked like an elephant. As she steadied herself, the monitors showed a title card that showed in stylized text set on a red curtain:

**The Amazing Clown's Last Act**

**Ultimate Clown Haruka Minami's Execution: Executed**

The room then lit up, revealed to be a great colorful room that looked much like a circus, and visible were the obstacles that Haruka was to face. Upon seeing them, she widened her eyes, sweat dripping down her face.

Once the elephant lit up, she screamed, as it rushed toward the obstacles at full speed. First was a line of great animal balloons of sundry colors, and they were right in Haruka's direction. As the elephant rushed through, the clown collided with the balloons, and every time she hit one, she was covered with some kind of water. By the time she was done, she had been fully drenched, and she looked incredibly dazed and in great pain.

Next up were many rings of fire that were set over a wide pit of water. The elephant leapt through the fire, which burned much of the clown's clothing in the process, and just as it jumped through the third to last ring, the elephant fell, not making it to the other side. As the greatly charred clown shrieked, the saddle on the elephant bounced her away as if it were a trampoline, the elephant diving into the water. Meanwhile, Haruka flew through the air and eventually landed on Monokuma's shoulders of all things. But Monokuma was riding a unicycle, and there was one last obstacle: a tightrope over a pit of spikes. The bear then began riding on the line, and as he rode on while juggling bowling pins, his stance grew unsteady.

Eventually, Monokuma made it over to the other side, and just as Haruka sighed in relief, he flung her over into a nearby cannon. Once it was fired, Haruka flew and flew until she collided with the floor, which only worsened her suffering. But that was not the end of that; right beside the spot was a great door, and once it opened, what rushed therefrom were great frightful mechanical elephants, all of which let out awful roars. They ran right toward Haruka at once, and without any mercy, they trampled on her body, stamping out what little life remained in her, and getting much blood on their feet. Only after all the elephants were done in their course could the clown's body be seen at last, blood covering much of the remains. The act was over.

* * *

"Phew! Now that was one great act, wouldn't you say?" Monokuma said, adjusting his white captain's hat. "Sure, it took a lot of money and testing for quality assurance, but seeing your faces was nothing but priceless!"

"Oh… Oh my God…" Masashi muttered once the sight of Haruka's corpse was set into his eyes. It was the most horrible thing that he had to ever see, his stomach turning, his urge to throw up growing.

"_Aaaaaaaaaah!_" Sister Hikari shrieked, tears running down her face.

"Holy fucking shit…" Sayua mumbled, sweating as dread rushed through her face.

"No… Th-This can't be…!" Hikari mumbled.

"Wh-Whoa... How the hell can someone think up of all that without getting sick?" Sorao said, shocked.

"It's certainly cruel and unusual punishment, to put it lightly," Haruyuki noted coolly, and yet, the uneasy expression on her face betokened his shock.

"My God… It's as if the devil himself had designed it," Murphy said, trembling a bit.

"I… I'd much prefer to look away next time," Tanjiro said, gaping at the monitor.

"Y-Yeah… Why did I have to watch that?!" Faye said, wishing that she had not been bidden to look at it.

"_Uwaaaaaaaaaah!_" Futaba shrieked, all grace and composure lost. Her face whitened, and she was looking downwards, as if about to faint. "Wh… What is this monstrosity that you have forced us to watch?!"

Maiha said nothing, but she was sweating as she clenched her teeth and covered her mouth with her hand. Even she, among the more ruthless of the group, looked quite frightened by this.

"N-No way… This can't be happening!" Red Mask said, looking away. Though her red mask covered her eyes, it was not hard to imagine what emotions they now showed.

Abraham stood a bit away from the group, but Masashi could still see hence the disgust and loathing all over his face. However tough and cold he might appear to be, this execution had inspired great fear in them all, and he was no exception.

Meanwhile, Mari was pacing about, a troubled look on her face. Seeing Atsushi's killer executed in such a brutal manner had clearly not delivered the group any justice, whatever Monokuma might say.

Kumi pulled the hood of his light-brown cloak over his face, growing pale, sobbing, and beginning to curl into a small ball like a baby. That he had been forced to watch the execution of a dear friend of his must have embedded in him great frightful images that he could hardly forget. Come to think of it, he had been similarly shocked when he had seen Atsushi's body, but his reaction back then had been much more subdued and less dramatic.

"N-No… No… No, no, no, no, no!" Arashi slammed the nearby podium with his fist. Even though he had told her how much she had hurt him with her betrayal, he still must have felt some connection to her, as the pain and agony on his face was all too great. "_NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! MONOKUMAAAAAAAAAAAAA!_"

"Whoa, chill out there, buddy!" Monokuma said playfully. "I'm not deaf, you know! Talk to me like a normal human being, or bear, as I prefer."

But Arashi would not listen, and he ran toward the judge's throne, looking as if dead set on killing him. Fortunately, Murphy and Sorao grabbed him by the arms, holding him back.

"C-Come on, man… Now's not the time to go breaking the rules!" Sorao said. "We've already lost one of our friends! We can't go on losing another one!"

"L-Let me go! LET ME GO! _LET ME GO!_" Arashi screamed.

Monokuma cackled as he relaxed on his throne. "Well, I'm all right punishing one of you right after an execution! It would be rather nifty to have two executions in a row, wouldn't it? Sometimes, it's good to get more work than usual done and over with."

As soon as Monokuma threatened to execute him, Arashi dropped his intense anger and resisted no more. It seemed that the thought of ending up like Haruka was enough to inspire obedience in him.

"How could you do such a thing?!" Masashi asked. "Why… Why would you disgrace Haruka like that?!"

"Disgrace? Buddy, if I had wanted to disgrace her, I would've used your execution for her instead," Monokuma said. "Trust me, no one wants to see an execution that doesn't fit at all. The punishment must fit the criminal."

"Uh, shouldn't it be 'crime', not 'criminal'?" Tanjiro asked.

"As if! Besides any breach in the rules, the only crime you'll be punished for here is killing another human being!" Monokuma said. "Since all killings are deemed the same, it gives me more creative freedom to run wild with your punishment. No silly things like 'five years' time in prison', 'community service', and whatnot."

"You… How dare you let such a travesty happen!" It was Maiha, who now pointed at him accusingly. "This is nothing but a sham of a court!"

"Aw, you still don't get it?" Monokuma said. "I didn't let it happen. Haruka Minami did. She was the one that killed Atsushi Morokuzu, and thanks to that, two Ultimates are now dead! And I had already said what the rules were, so she had no excuse."

"But you're the one that put us here in the first place!" Masashi said. "Why?! Why are you doing this to us?!"

Monokuma giggled. "Well, now, that's a mystery for the ages! In fact, maybe if the killing game goes on, you'll get more clues on what _truly_ happened to you guys."

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Hikari asked.

"Wait… is this about the outside world?" Sorao asked, a grim look on his face.

"Who knows? Well, I do, but there's no way in hell I'll tell you guys!" Monokuma replied. "Only time and a few more dead bodies will tell.

"Well, now, it's been so fun to see the _despair_ running through your veins!" the captain said. "But you know, I've got something cooking back in my room, and I need to make sure it doesn't blow up. See you later, suckers!"

That said, Monokuma disappeared, which left only the sixteen stupefied students in this courtroom. For a long while, they only stood there silently, being forced to take in the sick reality that they were in. Of all people, Haruka, the light-hearted and gleeful clown girl, had been the first to kill, and so if Haruka had been all too willing to kill, then there was no doubt that this killing game would continue, any one of them being her successor.

"Um… everyone? May I say something?"

It was Sister Hikari, who still appeared rather shaken by the whole ordeal, and yet, she seemed to have made a bit of a recovery.

"I… I think we should all remember what Haruka told us in the end," she started. "I know that now is the time to grieve… but we mustn't stay like this forever. That wouldn't be what she wanted, would it?"

"Yeah…" Sorao said, looking a bit tired. "It'll take some time, but we'll just have to accept it."

"And… it's not only Haruka whose death we should lament," Sister Hikari said. "I know that Atsushi wasn't the kindest man, but still, as the deputy, he meant well in his deeds. So please… don't forget about him as well."

"That's right... I won't forget him," Masashi swore. At the very least, he could say that Atsushi had interested him with his way of thinking. If he had not died, then perhaps he could have taught him a thing or two.

"Yeah, neither will I," Murphy said. "I didn't know the man at all, but I think he could've come around and gotten a bit friendlier, you know?"

"I… hope that his soul may find peace," Hikari mumbled.

"Man… if none of us could kill, we'd all be happy together, don't you think?" Sorao said sadly.

"Unfortunately, I must disagree," Haruyuki said coolly. "As long as we have the ability to choose, we shall always think about how things might have played out differently. And we are none the worse for it. Both comedy and tragedy come from the same root, and thus, if one lost the potential to be sad, one would also lose the potential to be happy."

"In any case, we should be glad that we are all alive now," Futaba said weakly. "I… believe that we should go to bed."

"Lady Inoshishi, do you need any help?" Sorao asked. "You look awfully tired and weak."

"No… No, I am well enough," she answered unconvincingly. "But... I appreciate the gesture, nonetheless."

"But I don't think the same can be said for the boy there," Murphy said, pointing at Arashi, who had turned rather silent and listless.

"Well, I suppose I should take him to his room and put him in bed, then," Sister Hikari suggested. "Faye, could you accompany me?"

Faye nodded. "It's the least I can do now. What about you, Kumi? Do you want us to help you go to bed?"

The storyteller, who too had grown eerily quiet, nodded. Masashi could only wonder how much it had hurt Kumi to see someone dear to him killed in such a bloody spectacle.

The sixteen students then headed over to the elevator, from which they had come out as seventeen. The ride up was lacking in any noise that was not from the machinery, and once the elevator stopped, they stepped out and made their way across the gangway to the ship that was part of an amusement park. As soon as they were all aboard, the black ship, in which the class trial had been conducted, sailed away and disappeared into the horizon.

After the students headed into their rooms, Masashi had nothing but a great desire to sleep. Tonight was supposed to have been a night of fun, and yet, it ended with the deaths of two of his friends, and it was all for knowledge's sake. It was all so much to take in that he wanted nothing more than to forget about it and go to sleep.

* * *

Now this was weird. Though he was tired, however long he shut his eyes, Masashi still could not sleep. Of course he could not simply forget about it; after what he had seen, there was no way that he could fall asleep that easily.

He left his room and headed over to the main deck. He had seen none of the others, and yet, he had a feeling that most of them were still awake, all too bothered by the corpse's images that their minds kept making. Nonetheless, they all chose to stay in their rooms. It was all quiet. This was good.

As Masashi walked over to the bow, he looked heavenwards and saw the same starry sight as before. For a short while, he stopped his walk and took in the sight, finding it rather calming and soothing. And yet, he could not but feel a sense of envy; the stars could hang there forever, for all that happened here had hardly anything to do with them. What wonderful peace it must be, he thought. If only he could have it and keep it, then it would be a most wonderful gift. Nonetheless, he was not up at the starry heaven, and so all the bliss that he felt was but fleeting.

Masashi kept his way toward the bow, only to see that there was someone there as well. It seemed that he was not the only one that was not ready to turn in for the night.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Masashi asked. It was Mari, who was looking off at the distance, as if seeking something.

Mari turned toward him, looking not at all bothered by his sight. "Oh, it's you… Well, to answer your question, nothing much, really. I'm only taking in the sight here."

"Can't sleep, huh?" Masashi stood next to her. "I'd figure that you would simply look out your window. The sight there must be as wonderful."

"Well, I could say the same for you, couldn't I?" she replied. "And besides… I much prefer the main deck. Here, I am outdoors and can feel at ease."

"Huh, really?" Masashi said. If he remembered correctly, she, as a phenologist, studied seasonal changes. It was no wonder that she was an outdoorsy woman.

Mari quietly nodded as she kept her gaze at what was ahead. For a while, Masashi said nothing, thinking that she wanted some quiet time to look at the sight. But sooner or later, he remembered that Mari had worked as Atsushi's assistant. As he was now gone, she must still be trying to take in all this. It certainly explained her rather quiet expression.

"Um… Mari?" Masashi said as he faced the black-haired girl. "About what happened tonight… I'm sorry…"

"Sorry?" Mari looked at him, confused. "Why do you say that?"

"Well… it's just that… I could've stopped Atsushi from being killed," Masashi said softly. "I was the one that suggested that you ride with me. If you had ridden with Atsushi instead, then he wouldn't have been killed, right? Sure, he wasn't a swell guy, but that doesn't mean he deserved to die."

Mari let out a small sigh. "Well.. you may think him to be harsh and condescending. I'm certainly aware that he was like that to others. But still, even in the relatively little time that we spent together here, I learned so much from him that I wish I could thank him if he were still here. He was undoubtedly a wonderful and knowledgeable man."

"Ah… Well…" Masashi said, not knowing exactly what he ought to say. Mari was the one who had spent the most time with him, and so he trusted that her thoughts on him were right.

"But you also say that you could have stopped him from being killed… And much as I appreciate the gesture, you're wrong about that," she continued, her tone calm. For some reason, Masashi felt that her glance at him livened a bit. "You're forgetting one very important thing: Atsushi would've never let himself sit with another one of us during that round. After all, Haruka had sent him that note to ensure that he should be alone."

"Ah… Yeah, that's right."

"Atsushi was set on following its instructions, which is why he said nothing about it to me. He would do anything to find what he thought was a great secret. His lust for knowledge was admirable, but it was also his downfall."

Masashi nodded, but he also grew intrigued. Though having lost someone dear, she was handling this far better than he had assumed. She was not at all like Kumi and Arashi.

"Well, when you put it that way, I guess I shouldn't beat myself up for not saving Atsushi when I could have, right?" Masashi replied, rather amazed by her resilience.

"Do not think yourself to be at fault for it," Mari said as she looked back at the horizon. "There was nothing that you could have done to save him. He was always meant to be killed."

* * *

**Chapter 1 - The Woodland King Comes - END**

**Surviving Students: 16**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki - Ultimate Lucky Student**

**2\. Atsushi Morokuzu - Ultimate Archaeologist (DEAD)**

**3\. Faye Nirigiri - Ultimate Patissier**

**4\. Maiha Hanazawa - Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer**

**5\. Takumi Takamitsu - Ultimate Storyteller**

**6\. "Red Mask" - Ultimate Phantom Thief**

**7\. Abraham Zargari - Ultimate Waiter**

**8\. Futaba Inoshishi - Ultimate Figure Skater**

**9\. Arashi Seiya - Ultimate Pyrotechnician**

**10\. Hikari Fey - Ultimate Spirit Channeler**

**11\. Sayua Tomi - Ultimate Cheerleader**

**12\. Tanjiro Urata - Ultimate Historical Novelist**

**13\. Hikari Shinto - Ultimate Nun**

**14\. Haruka Minami - Ultimate Clown (DEAD)**

**15\. Murphy O'Hagan - Ultimate Potato Farmer**

**16\. Haruyuki Kanagawa - Ultimate Art Critic**

**17\. Sorao Mineta - Ultimate Celesta Player**

**18\. Mari Anzai - Ultimate Phenologist**

* * *

**Once again, the survivor list's order above doesn't mean anything. After all, Atsushi's second, and yet he's dead, so it's not as if it meant that Knowledge Man is more important than, say, Musical Rantaro or Spirit Medium Toko.**

**Anyway, the first chapter has come to an end at last! We'll have to say goodbye to Haruka here. It was pretty hard to write her confrontation and execution since I liked Haruka a lot, and even though she was a pretty simple character, I thought she had a lot of charm and added a lot of light-heartedness. Since the chapter's over, I'd like to thank emilio . rubilar . 75 (spaces added by me) for sending me Atsushi Morokuzu, and BubblesOfTheNine for sending me Haruka Minami. They were both very lovely characters, and even though they're dead now, I hope you can stick around for the rest of the story!**

**Much as I wish that all eighteen characters might live, this is Danganronpa. Tragedy will happen, but then again, so will comedy, so it's not all bad.**

**Next time, a new chapter begins, and the aftermath of Haruka's killing will be shown a bit more! Now, then, let me ask you: what are your predictions for the future chapters? Who do you think will be survivors, killers, or victims? And last but not least… which character do you think is the mastermind?**


	15. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (1)

**Chapter 2: The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands**

The next morning, Masashi woke up a bit later than usual. Thanks to the talk that he had had with Mari last night, he had had a good night's sleep, but the fatigue and exhaustion from last night's ordeal was still there. Days and days ago, eighteen people found themselves trapped on this ship, but now, two of them were gone, and the situation had not improved at all. It was beyond clear that the mastermind behind the killing game meant business, and it had been foolish to deny that in the first place.

_Still, what can we do about it?_ Masashi thought as he readied himself for the day. _Maybe if we figure out why this game is held in the first place… but what clues can we even find?_

Once he was done, Masashi left the room, carrying his tablet in his gray jacket as usual. When he arrived at the dining room, a few of the others were already there, the chatter in the room quiet and listless. Those who were here were Faye, Futaba, Tanjiro, and Abraham.

"Ah, Masashi, there you are," Faye said. "Are you all right, by any chance?"

"Oh, yes, no problems here," Masashi answered, though he still appreciated her concern for him. "How about you?"

"Well, I'd be lying if I said that I'm all right. Everything that happened last night was all too…" She heaved a heavy sigh.

"Yeah… I'm pretty sure we all feel the same way," Tanjiro said meekly.

"Hmph. Speak for yourself," Abraham replied, sneering. "The damned spectacle was awful, but I've already managed not to let it bother me anymore."

"Is that so?" Masashi said.

"Of course," the waiter answered. "Out of sight, out of mind. It's that fucking simple."

"I don't really think it is," Tanjiro mumbled, not daring enough to say it outright. Nonetheless, Masashi suspected that Abraham would have dismissed his answer even if he had heard it.

"However we may feel about it, we cannot start the day without breakfast," Futaba said, showing her usual graceful expression. "See to it that our meals be prepared as soon as possible."

"Now hang on," Abraham said. "Where is that nun? She's usually up and about by now."

"I believe that she is tending to Kumi right now," Faye said plainly. "I saw her on his door earlier as I headed up here."

"She must've been worried about him," Tanjiro said. "I mean, I don't think Kumi's of the kind that can handle gory imagery."

"Hmph. What a fucking waste of time," Abraham said, his expression becoming bored. "What's the point in having to worry about that stupid little fucker, when he's been playing around and doing fuck all?"

"Hey! Even if you don't like him," Faye said, giving him the evil eye, "he's still a child, a youngling—"

"A dumbass," Abraham forcefully finished. "For fuck's sake, even at his age, he still believes in fairies and dragons and all that bullshit. It's no goddamn wonder that the clown girl almost successfully framed him."

"Uh, you do realize that you were also tricked, right?" Faye said, eyeing him warily.

"And? That does not change the fact that he's a dumbass, and even his so-called friend knew that full well," Abraham gloated.

"I… don't really like what he has to say," Tanjiro added, "but Abraham has a point. Kumi is a bit weird, to say the least, and Haruka admitted that she had taken advantage of that."

"In either case," Futaba said, her voice now having a hint of irritation, "breakfast has not been cooked yet. Faye, surely you can tend to breakfast by yourself, yes? I expect as much from the Ultimate Patissier. And Abraham, you are to start work at once, so I also expect polite behavior from you."

Abraham sighed with frustration as he glared back at Faye. "All right. I see how it is. I suppose the matter can be left alone. We all know which one of us is right."

Faye scoffed. "And while I'm cooking, don't go into the kitchen. Your presence will only distract me."

And with that, the argument ended. Faye stormed off into the kitchen, mumbling something angrily, whereas Abraham showed a satisfied expression as he sat at a table by his lonesome.

"Such a troublesome quarrel," Futaba said as she sipped her cup of tea.

Not long after, Sorao, Maiha, and Arashi arrived, their presence dully acknowledged. Sorao, nonetheless, seemed not to care as he bade everyone a good morning and approached the leading lady with his usual bright smile.

"Ah, Lady Inoshishi, I hope you've not fallen sick or anything," Sorao said with a hint of worry. "After last night's events, I could not stop thinking about how horrible this must have been to your health."

Futaba let out a small sigh as she showed a slight smile. "Ah, Sorao, you did not need to worry about me at all! The execution was very grisly, of course, but a night's rest was enough to let me recover."

"Really? Well, I'm glad you're all right," Sorao said as he chuckled light-heartedly and sat next to her. "It'd break my heart if our beloved leader were to become too distressed."

_Wow, talk about being friendly, _Masashi thought as he watched the scene with a bit of amusement. It was obvious that Sorao was overblowing his friendliness a bit, however helpful he might be, but amazingly enough, Futaba seemed not to have noticed. In the end, however, she at least found someone whom she deemed to be good company, and if she was happy that way, then he had hardly any reason to complain about it.

Meanwhile, Maiha and Arashi sat at another table. The latter lacked his usual energy and hot-headedness, but he was not so dreary that it looked as if he had fallen into sheer despair. Rather, he showed a much more subdued expression as if he had lost all use of his voice.

"Hey, buddy, are you all right?" Masashi asked as gently as he could.

"I… I am..." Arashi said, not even looking toward him. However calm he might sound, the jig was exposed by his slight quivering. "I'm… I'm just thinking about something, that's all…"

"Are you sure?" Masashi said.

"Y-Yeah… Leave me alone, will you?" Arashi asked.

Maiha said nothing, instead doing her usual routine of focusing her attention at Futaba and Sorao as they chatted happily. Given her attitude toward "commoners", Masashi could definitely say that nothing from her would help Arashi in any way.

_I wonder what he's thinking…_ Masashi thought. Arashi had denounced Haruka right before her execution, and yet, he had shown the angriest reaction, almost breaking one of the rules. His emotions had been all over the place, and so Masashi could not exactly pinpoint what he now felt. It seemed like grief, and it would explain his atypical silence, and yet, Masashi sensed that there was more to it than that.

A few minutes later, Sister Hikari arrived at last, accompanied by Murphy, Sayua, and Kumi. The potato farmer and the cheerleader sat at separate tables (Sayua in particular sitting at the same table as Tanjiro), whereas the nun and the storyteller sat together.

"A-Ah… Sir Masashi, good morning," Kumi said nervously, cracking a slight smile.

"Good morning, Kumi," Masashi said. "Are you all right?"

"I-I am, thank you," the storyteller answered as he went through his satchel and took out the book in which he wrote his tales. "I… I guess I should thank you for defending me. Almost everyone else thought I'd killed Sir Atsushi, but… you still believed in my innocence."

"Ah, well… it was nothing, really," Masashi said as meekly as he could. "But, Kumi, I should also say that I'm… sorry for your loss. I know that Haruka was a close friend of yours, and…"

Upon the mentioning of her name, Kumi grew more and more sorrowful in his expression, and it was not long before he began to burst into tears, albeit slightly.

"I… I know," Kumi said in a choked voice. "I… I don't want to believe she's dead… But… I can't forget it… H-How she was killed…"

"Oh, Kumi!" Sister Hikari said worriedly as she got closer to him and touched him on the shoulder. "We all know how you feel, and I want you to know that I'm here for you, if you should ever need me!"

"Th-Thank you, Sister Hikari…" Kumi replied as he kept his quiet weeping. "I… I just don't know what to do… Sh-She would be here for me, telling me jokes and whatnot..."

"Well… I understand your sorrow," Sister Hikari said softly. "It's all right if you feel helpless right now. We all have different ways to handle loss."

"R-Really…?" Kumi looked up at her, eyes watering. "But… is it even right that I grieve? Lady Haruka wanted me to be happy… Those were her last words for me."

"Well, it is true that she wanted you to become happy again eventually," Sister Hikari said. "But she did not say that you must not grieve. Indeed, that you now grieve is good, for grief is a sign that you can see that something is wrong."

"Still… I don't know whether this pain will ever go away..."

Sister Hikari chuckled. "Oh, that's a common sentiment, but you mustn't fear! I know that it is tough and difficult, but God hopes that we may overcome the trials and tribulations that He has already foreseen. Though you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, the Lord is there for you as your shepherd. He will lead you to safety, as long as you have enough faith to follow Him."

"I… I don't really get it…" Kumi whimpered. "But… if that's what you say, then maybe things will turn out all right for us all…"

"Exactly!" Sister Hikari widened her smile as she physically comforted him more. "You have a little faith right now, and if you hold fast to it, eventually, it will reward you greatly."

"I…" Kumi sniveled. "I… I don't know why, but… there's something about what you say that makes me feel a bit better. So… thank you."

Though the smile that Kumi showed was small, the warmness that Masashi felt in his heart was as great. He had worried a bit that Kumi would be so harmed by what he had seen that he might never recover from his dear friend's loss, but with Sister Hikari's guidance and comfort, she had stopped him from going astray. Over time, they all would overcome this, and sooner or later, they would find a way out of this situation. It might look hopeless, but he now felt faith that they could still fulfill Haruka's last words for them.

Not long after came in the remaining students: Haruyuki, Mari, Red Mask, and Hikari. Right around then, Faye came out of the kitchen and bade Abraham set the dishes for each of the students, and so the waiter rose and headed off to work.

"Well, then… Let us eat!" Futaba said once all the dishes were given the students.

And so the students ate (Abraham being the exception as usual), chattering as they usually did, but there was still an air of unease hanging over them; now that all the students were here, Atsushi's and Haruka's departures made themselves all the more apparent. And yet, the other students kept talking casually as if it were another day.

_Ah… I think I get it,_ Masashi thought. _This must be their way of handling their grief._

Most of the others must have let out their grief in private and found some way to cope with the situation somehow. The only ones who were hardly any talkative were Hikari and Arashi; the former was expected, given her usually uneasy nature, but it was still bizarre to see the latter like this, even though Masashi knew that he must be grieving; the reason did not change the fact that his typically upbeat and energetic nature was gone for now. Even Kumi made an effort to be his usual self, talking about his tales with Sister Hikari, Mari, and Haruyuki, all of whom sat at his table. It certainly helped in restoring some energy and glee in his voice.

Some while later, however, someone popped up right before Futaba's table, at which the whole room became silent at once, for it was none other than Monokuma.

"Hey, now, everyone looks pretty alive!" the self-called captain said blithely. "Too bad I can't say the same for your two buddies, though. They sure had a good thing going for them while they were still here."

"What do you want now?" Futaba asked, she and the others eyeing him annoyedly.

"Have you perhaps come to mock us?" Haruyuki asked.

"Mock you? Now why would I do that?" Monokuma said. "This is meant to be a celebratory time! After all, you sixteen have survived the first class trial! I think that you deserve a reward for your work!"

"A… reward?" Masashi said.

"You know, something that'll make your lives a little better as this killing game goes on!" Monokuma answered. "As you may know, Brightmere Mirthyard is a special kind of amusement park! It's made up of sundry ships, and so I figured that an expansion would be good!"

"An expansion? Are you saying that there's another ship available for us?" Sorao asked coolly.

"Yep! Henceforth, that ship will sail abreast of this ship!" Monokuma said as he doffed his white captain's hat. "Let me tell you, managing one ship is hard work, so you can imagine how much harder it is to manage two! Perhaps one day, I can show you the hardships and tiresomeness that I face as a captain."

"No thanks!" Sayua exclaimed. "I'm not interested in your crappy little job!"

"Why, you…! Don't you know that without me, this whole ship might sink?" Monokuma replied with fake anger. "After all, what would you ever do if this ship hit an iceberg or a kraken?!"

"Well, I doubt we have to worry about that. I haven't seen any icebergs at all," Mari said, looking nowhere in particular.

"And there's no such thing as krakens, anyway," Abraham said snidely. "Everyone knows that… Oh, correction: everyone but the fantasy fairy idiot over there knows that."

"H-Hey! How could you say that?" Kumi said, looking a bit shocked that his fantastic thinking had been denigrated once more. "Krakens are real, I tell you! There once was a famous hero who fared through sundry lands, and a kraken was one of the many beasts that he saw—"

"Be quiet, witless commoner," Maiha bade. "I tire of hearing your rank hogwash."

"But—"

"Now, now, Kumi, there's no use bickering with her about this," Sister Hikari said. "Whether or not there are krakens isn't what we're talking about. We're talking about something a bit more serious."

"Serious? You mean adult stuff?" Kumi pouted. "That's boring! Can't we talk about something else instead?"

Monokuma chortled. "Ah, the whining of youth… How I remember the days when I was but a young cub, when I was angry that my father wouldn't give me a higher allowance! Now that I'm older, I'm sure glad that I outlived him and got all his money as part of the will."

"Such disrespectful talk!" Futaba said with a hint of shock and disgust.

"And besides, it's all made-up," Sorao added.

_Yeah, here's our captain, saying nothing true and meaningful at all…_ Masashi thought.

"Anyway, enough reminiscing!" Monokuma said. "To check out the new ship, all you have to do is go to the main deck! The two ships are connected by a sturdy gangway, and as for what the neighboring ship is like… well, I'll leave it to you to explore it! See ya, passengers!"

As soon as Monokuma left, a silence fell upon the room once more, all the students befuddled by the captain's announcement. Masashi had not expected to see Monokuma so soon after the class trial, let alone hear about how they had access to a new ship now.

"Well, then, shall we head off?" Futaba said at last.

"Wh-What?" Hikari said. "Y-You're truly going to do what Monokuma wants us to do? That's pretty careless..."

"Yeah… I'm not so sure about it," Faye said. "Maybe it's a trap of some kind."

"I highly doubt that Monokuma means to lure us into a trap," Futaba said. "Much as I loathe the situation brought forth by this killing game, I can see that Monokuma has hitherto not tried to physically harm us."

"And killing us would defeat the purpose of this whole killing game he hosts, you know," Sorao added. "So I don't think it's a trap."

Faye looked slightly more convinced, but there was still a bit of uncertainty on her face. Nonetheless, she said nothing as Futaba continued.

"Once we are done with our investigation," she said, "we are to meet here again and report our findings. Afterwards, I shall list today's agenda, and we can resume our usual activities."

_Our usual activities…_

Masashi sighed as the others headed forth to the main deck and left him alone. Futaba was still insistent that her family would eventually come to save them, and so the only thing that they ought to do was wait. But upon remembering Atsushi's and Haruka's deaths, Masashi wondered how many of them would be killed off before the Inoshishis came to resume them. He wanted to believe that none of them would ever try to kill, especially after they all had seen Haruka's execution, but her killing had been enough to awaken him from his silly dream that this killing game would never go on. The best that he could do was hope that Atsushi and Haruka would have become the only victims by the time their rescuers came.

* * *

Masashi had not known what he was to expect from the captain, but in the end, he was still awed by the new sight on the main deck. A small part of the main deck's port railing was gone, instead replaced by a secure gangway linked to a ship that looked as great as this one. The other ship, however, looked nothing like this one, even on the surface; for one, the main deck was covered in sandy decoration and palm trees. There was some kind of building in the ship's stern, and there was a fountain not too far from the bow.

After he walked over the gangway, he took a closer look at the fountain. On the circular platform in the middle was set a statue of a sphinx, a mythical creature that had a man's head and a lion's body. Water poured out from its slightly open mouth, the sound soothing and tranquil. Masashi had seen the creature only from pictures of the wonder, and he had wondered at how much work it must have taken the workers to build it. A friend of his that had gone to Egypt for vacation had said that standing before it had let him take in the sight's awesomeness and mystery, though for most of the conversation, the same friend had often complained about how sweltering the weather had been. Luckily, though it looked like a desert here, the weather was tolerably warm.

There was another thing of note: unlike the other ship, this ship had no aperture on the main deck. Therefore, no one could try to use Haruka's trick on this ship. Relieving as it was to see that, Masashi was not so witless as to think that there were no other ways to kill a man.

Once done looking around the main deck, Masashi headed over to the ship's stern, where lay the building that he had seen. The entrance was guarded by two statues of upright jackal-headed beings that each held golden spears, and on the walls inside were hieroglyphs that, though well drawn, most likely meant nothing meaningful or important.

The lower deck was also not like the second deck in the woodland kingdom. Instead of being two hallways linked to one room, it was one great hall that ran from one end to the other, the walls covered with hieroglyphs and sundry drawings of plants. There were three doors on the stairs' left, and only one on their right. Masashi headed off to the first door to the left, and upon first glance, it appeared to be a lounge. There were several golden chairs strewn throughout the room, and more interestingly, there was a fireplace on the wall opposite to the door. The fireplace had a few statuettes of men with the heads of a few different animals, which gave it more of an impression of being an altar of some kind.

"Well, what have we got here?" It was Sayua, who was here with Tanjiro. "You think there's some kind of secret?"

"Hmm… I'm not sure," Tanjiro replied, looking around uncertainly. "I wouldn't be surprised if there were a secret somewhere here. After all, there was a hidden library back in the first ship."

"Well, start looking around, will you?" Sayua said as she sat down on one of the golden chairs and became relaxed. "That's my bidding, and _you have to do it now!_"

_Ah, didn't she say that last time?_ Masashi thought as he recalled his first experience with her. She had taken him to the playroom and made him look around while she had done nothing at all. Indeed, she had even tried to liven him up with that cheerleader chant of hers, and unsurprisingly, Tanjiro also looked none too excited to follow her bidding. Nonetheless, he followed her bidding and began to look around.

"Hey, Sayua, don't you think you should help out as well?" Masashi suggested softly.

Sayua eyed him critically. "What a waste of energy that would be! I don't need to do any work, when I already have a fan to do it instead."

"Uh, I don't recall having ever become your fan," Tanjiro pointed out meekly.

"What? Come on, buddy, you agreed to be part of my fan club when we first met!" Sayua said. "And besides, less talking, more working! Chop-chop!"

_Yeah, definitely like last time…_ Masashi thought.

"Ah, I've found something." Tanjiro showed them both a brochure that had a map of this ship. Like the woodland kingdom, this ship, called The Great Pharaoh's Palace, had four decks, and they were now on the second deck. The layout of the decks differed, as Masashi had expected.

"Good job, buddy. You'll make a dedicated fan yet," Sayua said.

Tanjiro sighed with a sense of tiredness. "Uh, thanks…"

Though feeling sorry that Tanjiro must bear with her, Masashi would rather look elsewhere, and so he left. As the other two doors on the left side led to the men's and women's restrooms, Masashi thought to check out the room on the opposite side of the hallway now. This room had nothing but sculptures of four animal-headed characters. Before each sculpture was a small stand that listed out information. He read the one by the nearest sculpture, which seemed to have a sun disk on its head:

_Ra - the sun god. As the sun gave the world life and sustenance, it is no wonder that he was celebrated as the maker of everything. It was thought that the cycle of day and night was due to Ra's passage through the sky during the day and through the underworld at night._

"Hmm, interesting, isn't it?" It was Mari, who had been looking at the other exhibits.

"Yeah, I certainly know next to nothing about Egypt," Masashi said. "But you know, it's not all that strange. The whole idea of the god representing the sun to be deemed very important, if not the highest, isn't that weird."

"And it certainly has its parallels in other cultures, yes," Mari said, looking at the sun disk. "But it's more amazing that we even get to know about ancient cultures, don't you think?"

"Right. It's lucky that even parts of it survived and were found," Masashi said with a feeling of awe. "We have the archaeologists to thank."

Mari nodded along, though her expression made it look as if she were unattentive. "Well, I don't know much about the history of Egyptian archaeology. Maybe if Atsushi were still here with us, he might tell us a few interesting things about it."

With how normally she talked, it was as if Atsushi's death bothered her not even a little. It was amazing how quickly she had bounced back from the sorrow that she must have felt from his death.

"Hey, Masashi," Mari said, pointing at Ra's sun disk. "Doesn't that look a bit like a lamp to you?"

"Hmm… Well, I can definitely see it glowing," Masashi said. "I'm not sure how pleased Ra would be, though, to be used as a lamppost."

"Well, I'd have someone to talk to at night, at least," Mari said. "It'd be interesting to get to an ancient god every night."

"Sure, but according to the description, Ra's in the underworld at night," Masashi said, "so I don't think you'd get to have him at your bedside."

"Well, that's a shame."

Masashi then turned his attention to the other parts of the room. Besides the gods on display, there was a pedestal with a glowing orb on it. At first, he thought that the four pedestals were meant to be historical pieces as well, but the descriptions said that they were simply there to give the room lighting.

"So it's something the amusement park added for this room," Masashi said.

"Yeah, I don't think the ancient Egyptians used glowing orbs for lighting," Mari replied.

"Not even the gods themselves bestowed them that kind of gift, I guess," Masashi said.

The exhibit room was linked to another room of the same kind, four more gods on display. There, Sister Hikari was looking at a sculpture, and according to the description, it was Osiris.

"I don't know much about the ancient Egyptians," Sister Hikari said, "but I must admit: even though I, as a Christian, must think them to be heathens, I still find their whole belief system a bit interesting."

"Really?" Masashi said.

"Well, the belief system certainly explained many phenomena that the Egyptians could see at the time," Sister Hikari said. "It was part of how they saw the world. Hence, it also influenced how they thought one ought to act. To put it another way, the ancient Egyptians' religion gives us a way to look at how they saw their lives and how they were to live their lives. Religion is more than belief in a higher being: it is practice of values as well."

"Huh… Never really thought about it that way." As he hardly ever thought about religion, he thought that Sister Hikari had a rather interesting perspective about this. "By the way, where is Kumi?"

"Ah, he's exploring another room, I think," Sister Hikari answered. "He seems to become a lot more energetic when it comes to his fairy hunting, which is good, and I think that in a few days' time, he will have recovered on the whole."

"That sounds wonderful," Masashi said. "You sure are doing a wonderful deed."

"Thank you," she said, chuckling. "Of course, if I can, I'll also try to help poor Arashi. If only he were open to my help, however…"

Masashi raised his eyes. "He pushed you away as well?"

"Yes. It is clear that Haruka's death troubles him," she answered. "I tried to talk to him earlier, but he insisted that I leave him alone."

_Hmm… I wonder whether there's something in particular about her death that bothers him…_

Leaving the nun alone, Masashi went back to the first exhibit room and headed out to the hallway. There was actually another door at the other end of the hallway, but it had a sign that said "STAFF ONLY", like the door in the dining hall. Presumably, it was the door to the captain's cabin, and as expected, it was locked. Seeing no other way to go, Masashi headed down the nearby stairs to the third deck. This deck was also a straightforward hallway, two doors on the left side, and one door on the right. The first door on the left led to a small room with a few tables and chairs, but with many shelves of supplies for arts and crafts.

"This appears to be a room to busy young children with," Haruyuki said, who was with Red Mask and Murphy.

"Why do you look so serious about it?" Murphy asked.

"I find this room to be... inadequate," Haruyuki answered. "It is meant to be a place where creativity and imagination are given life, and yet there is little here that pushes any artists into wanting to draw. Perhaps if there were an image of some Egyptian scenery or an image of a pharaoh, then we would be spurred more."

"Aww, there you go again with that weird talk of yours!" Red Mask said as blithely as always. "I don't really get it, but as long as it has supplies, I think it'll do!"

Haruyuki turned away from the two. "Hmm… Is that so?"

"With how serious you come off, you shouldn't be surprised by our reactions," Murphy said.

"Well, I suppose my words have a lot of gravity to them," Haruyuki said.

"So lighten up, I say!" Red Mask suggested.

Thinking that he had heard enough, Masashi checked out the other room on this side of the hallway. When he entered the room, what entered his sight was nothing but yellow; there were many golden statues, pots, and other such valuable things throughout the room, and the wallpaper was of a much brighter hue. On the other end of the room was a lone chair that had two jackal-headed statues beside it. As the Woodland King had a throne room, so too did the pharaoh have a room where he was to conduct his affairs and meet with those that had an audience with him. Of course, there was no pharaoh here. Instead, the ones here were Kumi, who was looking around the room, and Hikari, who paid no attention to the storyteller.

"Oh, Sir Masashi!" Kumi said upon noticing him. "I've been looking for this fairy for a while now, and I think it's hidden itself in one of these pots!"

"You're not going to break them, are you?" Masashi asked with a hint of concern.

"Well, breaking other people's stuff is bad, so I definitely won't!" Kumi said innocently. "And Lady Hikari! Don't you want to join me in my hunt?"

"N-No…" Hikari answered shyly. "I-I don't want anything to do with your fairy business. Just leave me alone…"

"What? But why?" Kumi said, confused. "I can assure you, fairies don't hurt humans! They're mischievous, sure, but the only thing they'll do upon being spotted is flee!"

"D-Don't bother me!" Hikari said, showing a little scowl. "I-I don't want to be bothered… Just do your silly hunting thing by yourself..."

Kumi cocked his head a bit, looking at her a bit more. "Well, I don't get why you don't want to go fairy-hunting with me, but if you change your mind, you're always free to join. Since Lady Haruka isn't here anymore..." He stopped for a few seconds. "I'd like it very much if you joined me."

Hikari looked away, not acknowledging his words, which shocked Kumi for a few seconds before he silently acknowledged her refusal and went back to his search for fairies. Masashi wondered why Hikari acted so mistrustfully, especially when Kumi was the kind of guy who could hardly hurt a fly, but Masashi also saw that trying to convince her to change her mind would be pointless, so it was best that he leave her alone.

Masashi left and headed off to the room on the other side. To his surprise, it was a great room that had, of all things, a zone for bumper cars. The cars each had great wheels in their back parts, though given how bumper cars worked, it seemed that the wheels had no functional use and were there only for looks. Moreover, the wheels suggested that the cars were meant to look like chariots, though there were no horses attached to them. Despite the cars' odd presence, Masashi admittedly wanted to try the ride out.

"Such a tacky design," Maiha said, who was with Arashi, who looked as quiet and listless as he had been earlier. "The ones in charge should have brought actual chariots. It would be much more entertaining."

"But then how will the chariots be moved?" Masashi asked, already feeling a bit annoyed with this woman.

"Hmph. It is simple: mechanical horses," Maiha answered. "I am sure that they can afford to have mechanical horses. After all, last night's grisly execution involved the use of mechanical elephants, did it not?"

_Wow, I wouldn't have expected Haruka's execution to be used as a reason to whine about bumper cars…_ Masashi thought. She definitely was lacking in grace, however fancy she might be in her appearance and speech.

"H-Haruka…" Arashi mumbled. "I-I… I shouldn't have…"

He wandered off to another part of the room, continuing to look unattentive of his surroundings.

"Is he still bothered by what we saw?" Maiha asked dismissively. "Yes, it was tragic, but it has already come and left, and I know that not all commoners are like that."

_Yeah, I should've figured you'd say something like that_, Masashi thought before he heaved a tired sigh. As Arashi apparently wanted to be left alone right now, Masashi thought that it was not the right time to delve into his problem. He left the room, and seeing that he was done with this deck, he headed to the stairs going down to the fourth deck.

Unlike the upper two decks, this deck was mostly water that stretched from the platform at one end of the room to the platform at the other. The walls were lined up with lean tall trees and lush plants, and so it was as if the body of water were a river that flowed through a pleasure garden. Even the walls looked a bit brighter, the ceiling painted the color of the heavens. On the platform on the stairs' side were four boats that each seemed great enough to hold four people.

"My, what a pleasant view!" Futaba said, accompanied by Sorao, Abraham, and Faye. "I dare say that if I were not in this kind of situation, I might have this feature implemented in my garden!"

"It sure looks pretty," Sorao remarked. "What's the river meant to be, though?"

"Oh, isn't it obvious? It's meant to be the Nile," Abraham answered, sneering.

"Wow, really? It doesn't really look like the longest river in the world," Sorao said light-heartedly. "Anyway… I bet you're a bit delighted to see this, Abraham."

Abraham looked at him puzzledly. "Hmm? What do you mean by that?"

"Well, I figured that this whole place must have reminded you of your homeland of Egypt."

It was then that the waiter scowled. "My family and I are from _Iran_, you goddamn idiot! It's the land that doesn't have the fucking sphinx in it, if it helps you remember!"

Sorao raised his hands in front of his chest, eyes widened. "Wh-Whoa, calm down there, buddy! I simply misremembered, that's all."

"You don't seem to have the greatest memory, if you ask me," Faye said with a hint of dumbfoundedness. "And come to think of it, you remember that I'm half-Japanese, right? So what's my other half?"

"Oh, well… Uh… You're… uh… hmm… oh… half-French, right?" Sorao said with an uncertain smirk.

Faye sighed. "With that look of yours, I'm pretty sure that was only a lucky guess on your part."

"Hey, come on, I got it right, didn't I?" Sorao said, looking a bit shocked at being shunned so. "Right, Masashi?"

"I, uh, can't argue with that," Masashi said, unsure as to which side he ought to take.

"Enough of your chattering. There still seems to be a part of this deck that we have yet to explore," Futaba said, her expression one of annoyance. "It seems that we must sail to the other side on the boats given us here."

"Woo-hoo, boat ride!" Sorao said excitedly. "Lady Inoshishi, let's ride together! It'll be fun to go through the river for only us two, don't you think?!"

Futaba chuckled, her face lightening up. "Why, yes, I can certainly see the appeal in it! And to ride it with you… Well, I feel rather excited about it. And given what you've done for me up to now… yes, you definitely are a bit like Maggie..."

"Maggie?" Sorao raised his eyes. "Who's that?"

Futaba let out a small gasp. "Oh, pardon me for the confusion! That's the name of a... very dear friend of mine, to put it simply. She is a rather caring and understanding soul, and, well..."

"And I take it that 'Maggie' isn't actually her name," Abraham said.

"Oh, no, of course not. It's simply a nickname. Her full name is Magdalena Engracia Pinto, I believe," Futaba answered. "As you may tell, she's a foreigner from Spain."

"A foreigner from Spain… I see, I see!" Sorao said, nodding along.

"Let's hope you remember that one, at least," Faye remarked, still looking a bit peeved at Sorao's forgetfulness.

"Well, much as I want to talk more about her," Futaba said, "now is not the right time to do so. We must get back to the investigation at once. Sorao and I shall board one of the boats, and you three are to follow us. Now, let us go already."

And so the leader and her advisor got onto one of the boats, after which it started to move. Without any delay, Masashi and the two others boarded another boat, which had no oars to row with; instead, there was only a button to press, which meant that the ride through the river was automatic. Once he pressed the button, the boat started up and slowly moved through the river's waters.

"Wow… This is pretty good!" Masashi said as he leaned back against his seat. Faye sat next to him, which left Abraham to sit behind them, though the waiter seemed unbothered.

"The flowers here sure are lush, gorgeous, and beautiful!" Faye said.

"Hmph… Why must I have to put up with all this?" Abraham mumbled, looking not too happy.

"Hah, I should've figured you'd be like that," Faye said. "At least enjoy the view!"

Abraham made no reply, continuing to look outside with a stern frown. Meanwhile, Sorao and Futaba seemed to be having much mirth, as Masashi could hear them chuckle even from where he was. The one thing that he could be sure about was that Sorao was definitely a good person to have on Futaba's side; there seemed to be nothing disagreeable about him but his forgetfulness on a few details.

Soon, the five reached the other side of the river. Here, there was only one way forward, and it was by going through a metallic door labeled "STAFF ONLY". Oddly enough, however, it was already unlocked, as Sorao opened it with no problems.

With only one glance, one could tell that this room was highly out of place. There was no ancient Egyptian imagery at all; instead, the walls were of a plain white hue, and the floor was of a subdued blue hue, which, on the whole, gave the room a laboratory's look. But there were no tables or any equipment for chemistry; instead, there were many gray rectangular pods set in a half-circle around the other end of the room. They were long enough to hold in humans, it seemed. And there was one more thing of note: the number of pods was sixteen.

_Sixteen… The same number of people in our group…_

He wanted to dismiss it as a coincidence, but given how odd the situation was, he was, in the end, more minded to think that this room had something to do with the group. The connection was still unclear, but the more he thought about it, the more certain he grew that the connection was there.

"Puhuhuhu! Curious now, aren't you?"

And out of nowhere, in his usual fashion, Monokuma appeared.

"You're wondering what these things are for, aren't you?" Monokuma said. "Well, hate to break it to you, but it's a secret for now!"

"For now, you say?" Sorao said.

"Well, someday, I'll show you what exactly this room is for. But for now, you don't have to try to open the dang things," Monokuma said. "Trust me, nothing will happen. It's like going on a long and boring sidequest in a game, only to be told that the treasure is the journey itself! What kind of cruddy reward is that?!"

"Opening a pod is hardly a journey, if you ask me," Faye said.

"Either way, it's pointless to open them at this time, it seems," Futaba said.

"Are we done here, then?" Abraham said.

"I suppose so."

"Well, then, see you later! I hope you'll have lots and lots of fun here in this palace!" Monokuma then disappeared, leaving the question of this room's purpose unanswered.

There were no other rooms connected to this mysterious room, so the fivesome could only head back. They looked around the platform on this side of the river, but their search yielded nothing.

* * *

The sixteen students met back at the dining hall and reported what they had found. Besides everything that Masashi had already seen during his exploration of the palace, there was one interesting tidbit: according to Sister Hikari, the doors of the exhibit rooms actually had locks. When she had first stumbled upon the room, the doors were already open, but the doors could be locked with the use of keys. Monokuma had given her such keys, being the one to tell her this piece of information.

"Excellent!" Futaba said, who sat at a table with Sorao as usual. "This is a most pleasing development."

"Huh? What's so 'pleasing' about that?" Sayua asked.

"It solves a problem that now plagues us," Futaba answered. "As we are all too well aware of, Haruka had unbridled access to the tools in the storeroom. If the storeroom had had a lock, then she would not have been able to use the rope to her advantage."

"Ah, so that's what you're saying," Murphy said. "If we put the most dangerous things behind a locked door, then there will be far fewer tools to kill someone."

"And putting the tools in one of our rooms would obviously lead to much mistrust," Haruyuki added, "so it would be better to stow the items in the exhibit room instead."

"Exactly," Futaba said, clapping her hands together. "We can prevent such a tragedy as Atsushi's death from happening again."

"But which one of us will be given the keys?" Masashi asked. Though understanding what she was going for, he still saw the fundamental problem in her plan: it needed someone to trust with the keys, and there was no guarantee that that person would not abuse the trust.

"Well, I have two persons in mind to be the keyholders. It is you two," she said, pointing at Faye and Abraham.

"Wait, you're talking about _us?_" Faye said.

"Indeed. Each of you will hold one key," Futaba said. "And all the items will be stowed in the second exhibit room."

"Ah, because to access that room, one would need keys to both rooms," Sorao said, who looked a tad surprised that he had not been selected. "After all, the second exhibit room is connected only to the first one."

"So all the items will be safe under their guidance," Futaba concluded. "It is a sound idea, is it not? I have selected you two because you have shown to be diligent in your work. You have proven your worth to me, in short. And much as I trust Sorao here, I would prefer that he be not bothered by this kind of work. His services are of a different kind."

"But… don't you think you could've selected someone else for this?" Faye asked with a hint of concern. "After all, we both don't exactly… well, get along."

"Hmph. For once, we agree," Abraham said, looking away from her.

Futaba, however, waved dismissively at her concern. "That is no problem. In fact, it is an opportunity to improve your relations with each other. That is another reason why I chose you two in particular."

"Ugh… all right, then," Faye said. Abraham too made no protest as Sister Hikari handed each of them a key.

"Here's to a long and prosperous relationship," Abraham said half-heartedly as he pocketed the key.

"Now, I believe that is all," Futaba said. "We shall move any dangerous items to the second exhibit room later. In the meantime, I believe that it is time for lunch—"

"W-Wait!"

To many's surprise, the one who objected was none other than Arashi, who had at last spoke at his usual volume.

"Wh-What is it?" Futaba asked, looking a bit annoyed.

"Um… I've just realized something!" Arashi then looked at Hikari, who grew a little startled at the sudden gazes at her. "Hikari, you call yourself the Ultimate Spirit Channeler, right?"

Hikari frowned as soon as he had mentioned her title. "Y-Yeah… what about it?"

"Well… doesn't that mean you can contact ghosts?!" Arashi asked with a bit of excitement. "Then you should be able to contact the ones who are now dead!"

"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Sorao said. "I completely forgot about that!"

"If Hikari's really the real deal, then she could channel someone like Haruka," Mari said.

"R-Really?!" This time, it was Kumi, who too looked rather energized. "You mean, we could talk with Lady Haruka and Sir Atsushi again?!"

The others then buzzed with interest as it became more and more apparent that they might be able to talk with the dead.

"N-No way…" Hikari profusely shook her head. "I-I don't want to use my powers…"

"What? Why not?" Haruyuki asked.

"I-I don't want to! C-Can't you understand that, at least?" Hikari said, worsening in her expression. "A-And besides… even if I wanted to use my powers, I _couldn't_, anyway."

Sorao raised an eyebrow. "Huh? What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know why, but… ever since I found myself here, I-I haven't been able to use my powers," Hikari answered, looking down at the floor. "Day or night… I just can't."

"Hmm… I wonder why…" Mari said.

"Hmph. Whatever the reason might be," Maiha said, "the only thing that matters is that she cannot use her powers. The one thing that separated her from the other commoners is now gone."

What joy and excitement that had popped up quickly died down, as the situation ended up not having changed at all. Their two friends were still dead and forever lost to them, and Arashi's question had been the one opportunity for them to deny the effects of their deaths. And speaking of him, Arashi himself had turned back to his unusually gloomy and quiet self, his face full of dreariness. Kumi also looked quite disappointed at hearing this news, but his expression showed only a little sadness, as he had already accepted that Atsushi and Haruka were gone. Meanwhile, Masashi found the seeming disappearance of Hikari's powers to be yet another mystery that he could not stop thinking about.

_Things definitely aren't normal now,_ Masashi thought, wanting to hear what the answers to his questions were. Wherever his curiosity pushed him to go, generally, he would follow. Otherwise, he would not be at peace with how things were.

* * *

**Well, the second chapter has begun! As you can tell, the setting this time is Ancient Egypt. I already have planned out a few things for this chapter, but I'm still flexible in where I'll go for this part of the story. Now that you've seen the beginning of this chapter, what are your predictions for what will happen? It can be related to which characters you think will die, or how certain characters may change or develop over time.**

**And once again, thank you for the reviews! I highly appreciate hearing what you guys have to say! It makes me happy to see that you've been enjoying this so far! Hopefully, I'll do well for this chapter!**


	16. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (2)

Once lunch ended, Futaba announced what the group's current plan was. She bade all the students keep in mind that sooner or later, her family or some other rescue force would come to save them.

"I can guarantee you that this dreadful nightmare must end eventually," Futaba explained. "Whether it be a week or a month, our saviors will come. In the meantime, we must not fall to murder's temptation."

The other thing that she said that Sorao was now the new deputy, which surprised very few of the group. Now that Atsushi was dead and out of the way, there was a void in the leadership, and naturally, Futaba's choice was Sorao, who had already become her unofficial deputy already.

"I'll do my best to make sure that things go smoothly from here on out," Sorao said coolly as he smiled.

Unlike Atsushi, however, he chose no one to be his assistant, which meant that Mari no longer had any "official" position. Then again, she looked not at all irked by this, simply going along with the conversation's flow.

"Now, then, Abraham, Faye, you are to start looking around the ship and gathering any potentially dangerous items," Futaba said. "As you are to stow them in the second exhibit room, it is of utmost importance that you not lose your keys. I expect that you have finished your task by tonight."

Abraham frowned deeply and sighed as he looked at his co-worker with reluctance. "If that's what you say…"

"It looks as it'd kill you if you ever smiled on your free time," Faye remarked snidely. The waiter did not return any remark, whether it were snide or angry, but he kept his displeased countenance, nonetheless.

Once Futaba was done, all the students went on their own separate ways. Feeling a little thirsty, Masashi grabbed a bottle of soda pop at the port hallway's vending machine before he decided to go back to his room. On the way down to the fourth deck, however, when he came to the third deck's garden, he stumbled upon a certain sight.

"N-No! Once again, I won't join your team!" It was Kumi, who was talking to Sayua and Tanjiro.

"Huh? You won't join?" Sayua said. "Don't you get it, you numskull? You're already a member, so you've gotta start working with me!"

"Uh, what's going on?" Masashi asked, wondering what the to-do was all about.

Sayua turned to him and showed relief. "Ah, there you are, Masashi! This guy here's saying he wants to leave Team Tomi!"

"'Team Tomi'?" Masashi said.

"It's the name of her, uh, fan club," Tanjiro explained. "During the investigation, she kept talking about it. I asked her whether it even had a name, and she responded by telling me to think up of one. 'Team Tomi' was the first name that I could think up on the spot."

_Oh, boy, it has a name now…_ Masashi thought.

"Yep! Tanjiro here's pretty useful in many ways, I see!" Sayua answered. "'Team Tomi' is a pretty good name. It captures the organization's essence very well, if you ask me! And it goes well with my jacket. Behold!"

Sayua turned around, letting the others look at her jacket's back, on which was shown a flower and a butterfly in its midst. Below the image was the word "TOMI".

"Looks good with my school emblem, don't you think?" Sayua said blithely.

The one thing that it showed was that even before this killing game, the cheerleader had already had an overblown self-image. Of course, on their first meeting, Masashi had had such a feeling, so if anything, it was clear that Sayua Tomi was not a mistress of subtlety.

"Now, then, Kumi!" Sayua said. "Get me something to drink as your first task."

"N-No! Again, I won't be part of your team!" Kumi said childishly, pouting. "You… You thought I was the bad guy in the class trial! Neither of you believed me at all! And to think, I thought that we could be friends…"

"Well, yes, we thought you were guilty," Tanjiro said, looking a little startled now, "but you must admit, Haruka did a pretty good job fooling us."

"Yeah! She's the one to blame, not us!" Sayua added, looking not at all sorry, however.

Kumi, however, turned a little angry upon the mentioning of Haruka's name. "Y-You… How could you say something like that? I… _I don't want to talk with you anymore!_"

He then stormed off to the nearby hallway. Though Tanjiro looked so shocked that he seemed to understand his error, Sayua, on the other hand, looked not at all sympathetic, instead shrugging him off.

"Hmph. What a lameass loser," Sayua said, her expression growing bored. "He could've had it all with Team Tomi, but no, he has to keep thinking about that dead chick."

"I think you could've worded your, um, _request_ much better," Tanjiro said meekly.

"Whatever. The more I think about it, the more I see that I don't need him anyway," Sayua said as she grabbed Tanjiro by the shoulder. "I have you here to help me out, after all!"

"R-Right…"

"Speaking of that, what are you guys up to now?" Masashi asked, wondering what Sayua would do from here on out.

Sayua scoffed as she fiddled with her strawberry-blond hair. "Can't you see? We're going to look for a way out of this stinking mess. You think we should just sit here waiting like lame ducks?"

"Well… Futaba said that we were to wait for her family or a rescue force to come save us," Masashi answered.

Sayua waved her hand dismissively at that. "And you believe that crap? I certainly don't! She said she wanted to stop the next killing, but I tell you that she's deluded. Someone's gonna be killed sooner or later, and we're gonna find a way out of this place before that person strikes, so Tanjiro and I will be looking around!"

"Huh… is that so," Masashi said, wondering at her plans. Even now, after Atsushi's and Haruka's deaths, the whole group was not truly united, and there seemed to be nothing that he could say to dissuade her, given how highly she thought herself. "Wait, but why are you helping her, Tanjiro?"

"Well, um, besides the fact that we should look for a way out, it's good that I keep an eye during her, uh, adventures," the writer answered, eyeing the cheerleader uneasily. "And moreover, she would've kept bugging me if I had refused. She was very adamant that I be in her clique."

_Ah, I see. Well, I feel very sorry for you,_ Masashi thought, knowing what working with her was like.

"Well, I've got a good eye, and I can tell you'll be rather useful, so from now on, you'll be my honorary right-hand man!" she said gladly. "Now come on! My gut tells me that there's something important in the hidden library! Let's go!"

The two members of Team Tomi then walked to the merry-go-round room, Tanjiro sighing as he drearily followed Sayua.

* * *

Now that Masashi felt refreshed enough, he thought it best that he pass the time by hanging out with one of his classmates. He left his room and walked around until he stumbled upon Sister Hikari in the Egyptian palace's lounge.

"Ah, Masashi, is there anything that you need of me?" the red-haired nun asked, appearing to be knitting a sweater.

"No, but I was just wondering how you're doing," Masashi answered as he sat by her. "Being in this kind of situation must be really trying on you."

Sister Hikari let out a gladsome chuckle. "I appreciate your concern for me, but there's no need to worry about me! I assure you, I'll be all right. I'm used to this kind of work in my everyday life."

Masashi raised an eyebrow. "What exactly is your everyday life like, anyway?"

"Well, to begin with, as a nun, I am to live a simple life of serving God," Sister Hikari answered. "But more specifically, I spend much of my day in prayer and in manual labor for my community. After all, even if I am a nun, I shall not have any food unless I work by the sweat of my brow."

"Wow, that sounds pretty simple, all right," Masashi replied. "I don't think I could stand that kind of work if I were in your shoes, though."

"Ah, that's pretty understandable. I don't think a monk's life would be right for you," Sister Hikari said. "In the end, I'm not here to force my religion on other people."

"Really?"

"Yes. It would not be bad if there were more Christians, but I would prefer that others came to the realization on their own. Instead, I am here to serve my community."

"That's pretty tolerant of you," Masashi said. "I've got to admit, I hardly ever talk with anyone of your background. It's pretty interesting what you usually do."

The nun smiled as she chuckled and continued her knitting. "There are very few of us in Japan, but if you ask me, the numbers matter not. Only one person is needed to help another."

"Hmm… That is true," Masashi said. "Anyway, you're pretty incredible if you're willing to help others out that much. It definitely must be tiring for you."

"Oh, it is, but as I have said, I do not mind," Sister Hikari said softly. "As the Ultimate Nun, I must make sure that I can save as many people as I can from pain. Yes… That's right." She looked down at what she was knitting. "No one deserves to suffer the pain that I've felt…"

Masashi raised his eyes, perplexed. "Uh, excuse me?"

Sister Hikari let out a small gasp. "Oh, pardon me! I was just talking to myself there. I didn't mean to have you hear that. But I suppose it's too late now, yes?"

"I can't deny what I've heard," Masashi answered.

The nun sighed. "It's something rather personal, as you can tell. But I think it'll be better if I tell you later. It's… not an easy subject to talk about, so I'd need a bit of time to ready myself for it."

As soon as she seemed keen to tell him, Masashi raised his hands defensively. "Oh, no, no, you don't have to tell me! It's all right if you want to keep it to yourself."

Of course, he said that out of courtesy, but deep down, he was curious about what had happened to her. Still, Sister Hikari was right; he sensed that now was not the right time to ask her about it.

"Oh… If that's what you say, then all right," Sister Hikari answered. "Now, I suppose I should finish this, at least!"

The nun continued her knitting for a long while. Eventually, she was done and showed Masashi the red sweater that she made. "How does it look?"

"I think it looks all right," Masashi answered, feeling the jacket. "It's not something that I'd wear on an important occasion, but it's still pretty good."

Sister Hikari chuckled. "I appreciate hearing that from you. I've made this as a gift, but my goodness, I don't know whom I should give this. Usually, it's someone who I hear is in need of something like this, but we have no lack of clothes during our time here, don't we?"

"Well, you should keep it for yourself, in the meantime," Masashi suggested. "That way, if you stumble upon someone who needs it, you can give that person the sweater right away."

"Oh, that's a good idea!" Sister Hikari replied. "Why, maybe I ought to knit you something more to your liking."

Once again, Masashi politely refused. "No, no, you don't need to do that. I think you should tend to yourself more. You've already done a lot for us lately."

She looked a bit askance at him. "Myself, you say? Well… I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Masashi."

* * *

"What the fuck do you want with me, you little pissant?"

Abraham looked with loathing eyes at Masashi. It was somewhat understandable, as he had interrupted him while he had been drinking a cup of coffee in the dining room.

"Well, I thought that we could talk a little bit," Masashi began. Much as he would like to talk to any other kind of person, he knew that he needed to try to befriend the less bearable of the group, as relationships helped make the group feel more connected. It was easy enough to get along with those of whom he already had a high opinion, but getting along with those like Abraham was another challenge.

"Talk? With me?" Abraham scoffed. "Piss off."

Masashi sighed. Even for someone antagonistic, Abraham was awfully tiresome to deal with. What was this guy's deal?

_Hmm… Maybe I should try this approach_, Masashi thought.

"Say, Abraham, you look a bit tired from all your work," Masashi said. "You don't mind if I help you a bit next time?"

To his surprise, Abraham snarled a nasty snarl, arms crossed. "No way in hell I'm going to let you get in the way. You'll likely trip and make a whole mess to clean up."

"Oh…" Masashi said, growing more befuddled. Was there anything that he could say to please him? "Well… Abraham, maybe you'd like me to make you a snack—"

"No! Fuck no!" Abraham exclaimed, looking awfully wroth.

_Wh-What the?_ Masashi thought, shocked by how livened up the waiter now was. He was still his standoffish self, but this time, he had focused on him.

"You know what, I give up!" Abraham said. "Seeing that you won't stop bothering me, I'd rather suffer the bane of talking with you than have you follow through with your pathetic attempts to make me think better of you!" He then sighed and shook his head condescendingly as he turned to face him. "Now what is it that you want to chat about with me? Surely there must be something, or else you've been wasting my goddamn precious time."

_Uh, that worked out… somehow_, Masashi thought, seeing more and more that the waiter was not the kind of man who liked to be helped.

"Well, to begin with, why are you a waiter?" Masashi began. "It's not the most glamorous job out there, if you ask me."

Abraham scoffed. "Naturally, just like how very few men want to be plumbers or garbagemen. But without them, society will fuck itself up sooner or later, so quite frankly, I don't give a damn about what you think."

_Again with the unfriendliness… _Masashi thought, reminding himself not to say anything that the man would easily use as a way to attack him. _Why can't you be more like my little sister? At least she's pretty friendly and kind both on her breaks and on her work time._

"Uh, let me ask you a different question, then," Masashi replied. "Did you want to be a waiter when you were a kid?"

"Hmph. Of course I didn't _want_ to," Abraham answered, "but I had to work as such. My parents started an Iranian restaurant when we first moved to Japan, and they put me and my other siblings to work as soon as we could work. It was menial work, but it was how I found myself best in working as a waiter."

"Wow… It must've been pretty tiresome to work when you were still young," Masashi said. "So are you still working at your parents' restaurant?"

Abraham grimaced a bit upon the mentioning of the restaurant, but a few seconds later, he shook his head, looking oddly calm. "No. After a… series of events, the restaurant became successful enough that all its debts could be paid off at last. And after some publicity about the restaurant's _authenticity_ and _exceptional_ staff—" He looked as if he wanted to laugh at those words. "—I decided to go higher and aimed for a position at a top-class restaurant. Needless to say, I got in without a hitch."

"And then you were granted the title of Ultimate Waiter, right?"

"Somewhat. I certainly did a damn good job at my new workplace," Abraham said. "And apparently, my excellent service got the attention of a famous restaurant critic. The man would later set up an award show to honor the staff of famous restaurants, and I happened to be nominated. I have to admit, it felt fucking fantastic to win first place… though it wasn't surprising."

"It's not?"

"Of course not. The other candidates were no doubt good, but unlike them, I've got the brightest personality and the best memory to enhance my service," Abraham answered, grinning snidely a little as he drank his coffee. "And that's how I became the Ultimate Waiter. Quite a tale, isn't it?"

"It certainly wasn't what I expected, that's for sure," Masashi said.

"Now are you done with me?" Abraham asked. "I can't think of anything else you'd want to talk with me. I'm quite fucking keen to end things off here."

Ordinarily, with this kind of man, Masashi would gladly go talk with someone else, but there was one thing that he had noticed: Abraham had sounded far less uncouth and less unfriendly in his speech as he had kept going on about his background as a waiter. It was clearly one of the few things that he was glad to talk about, and the reason was no wonder; Masashi could not but feel impressed by what he had done to earn his title. The man had left a rather sour impression on their first meeting, but it seemed that he was not so bad as he wanted to appear.

"But, Abraham, didn't you enjoy talking to me about yourself?" Masashi asked. "I think it'll be fun if we talk again later."

For a few seconds, Abraham stared at him with a perplexed gaze, pondering what he had said. Eventually, once he recovered, thankfully, he seemed to have taken the suggestion well.

"Hmph. Perhaps so," he answered blankly. "If I feel like it, maybe I'll kill time with you with more chatter."

Masashi was pleased not only by his response but also by the fact that he had not at sworn in his last statement. Of course, that was due to his thinking about the suggestion, but perhaps sometime later, he could get Abraham to be much friendlier than he normally was now.

* * *

When Masashi headed out to the main deck of the Egyptian palace, he found Mari walking around while looking heavenwards.

"Hey, Mari!" Masashi called out, which caught her attention. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh, nothing in particular," she answered. "Well, no, that's not exactly true. I've been trying to see whether there are any signs of bad weather. Right now, it's all clear, but it may all change very, very soon."

"Uh huh…" Masashi said as he looked at the heavens as well. It certainly was a beautiful day to relax outside. "Hey, listen, maybe you should take a break from all that. I don't think keeping track of the weather's all that important right now."

"Hmm… I guess so," Mari said. "But what do you suggest that I do, then? I've already looked around the whole place."

"Well, why not take a walk with me?" Masashi suggested. From what he could tell, Mari was the kind of girl who generally liked to look around rather than stay still.

Mari thought for a moment. "Sure, why not? The weather is rather swell, as you say."

And so the two walked around the ship's main deck, the seagulls flying smoothly through the blue heaven, the wind soft yet cool, the waves beating against the ship again and again, the sunshine giving the whole outside a soothing brightness. If this were no killing game, one might then that the two were heading off to such a swell place as the beach or a nearby park.

"Hey, Mari, I've been wondering…" Masashi began. "Do you often go exploring outdoors?"

"Why, yes, I do!" Mari answered with a spurt of energy. "Being outdoors is wonderful, isn't it? There are ever so many new things to find whenever I go outside each day. For example, there is always something different on the ground that we walk on. Such changes are not often worth noting for everyday folk, but to me, it's exciting to see what has changed in my environment since I last saw it!"

"You're really that particular?" Masashi said, a bit wide-eyed.

Mari giggled a bit. "Sorry, but it's something that I like to do. As a phenologist, I find it helpful if I keep an eye out for anything that may have changed. That's why I like to move around, you know. I like to look at things when I'm right near them. You don't find it troublesome, right?"

"Oh, no, not at all," Masashi answered. "Wait… why do you ask? Has it bothered someone else before?"

Fiddling with her fingers, Mari glanced upwards for a few seconds. "Well… my teachers would often complain that I liked not to stay still. They thought that it was a sign of naughtiness, but my classmates certainly thought otherwise."

"They did?"

"Oh, yes. Indeed, they even went to me whenever they wanted to know whether there was anything good to do while outside," Mari explained. "Even though I did not make many friends, I still appreciated that my classmates wanted to go exploring outside."

Given how she had been hitherto acting, Masashi could see why her classmates would see her as such. "So where do you usually go exploring anyway?"

"Well, I liked to run around at the nearby park or walk around in the woods near my house," she answered softly yet with enough energy that no one could mistake it for anything else but enthusiasm. "It was so wonderful to spend many an hour while looking at the trees and the woodland creatures. I dare say that I was quite the explorer in a few different ways."

"Really?" Masashi said. "You say you explored the park and the woods?"

"Yes. Even though the ground that I looked at had been trodden upon by many throughout the ages," Mari answered, smiling, "as an unknowing child, I found it amazing nonetheless."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," Masashi answered, thinking back when he and Keiko would often walk around in the park. Keiko had been a rather adventuresome little sister, and even when he had felt tired, he would always say yes whenever she wanted to look around the park some more before heading back home. "It must've been pretty wonderful to be able to enjoy that in your childhood."

Eventually, Mari said that she wanted to take a break from the walking that they had done. Masashi could not tell how much time had passed; the heavens were still of a clear blue hue, but an hour or two might have already gone by. Either way, he had found his time with Mari to be gladsome.

Mari chuckled heartily as she played with a fringe of her straight black hair. "Thanks for walking around with me, Masashi. While I usually explore by my lonesome, sometimes, it's fun to do it with a friend by my side. Maybe we can do this again later."

* * *

It was evening, and the dinner meal would begin in about an hour. Tired, Masashi thought to relax in his room for a while before meeting up with all the others in the dining room later, and so he began his way down to the fourth deck. On the way, however, as he passed by the lounge door, he heard weeping.

_Huh? I wonder who it is…_ Masashi, ever so curious as to what was wrong, opened the door slightly. Inside, it was, to his great surprise, Arashi, who was sitting on one of the chairs, his tears falling onto the floor, his hands clutching his head.

"Wh-Why… Why did I have to end it off like that…?" Arashi whimpered. "N-No… Wait, hold on! L-Let me take that back…"

Worried, Masashi opened the door and drew attention to himself.

"Arashi, are you all right?" he asked. "You don't look well at all."

Arashi looked right at him with watery eyes. It was unclear whether he was delighted that he was now here, but either way, there was a clear hint of anger on his face.

"I… I… _I've made an awful, awful mistake!_" he screamed, after which he clenched his fist and slammed it on the nearby wall.

"Wh-Whoa, calm down!" Masashi rushed toward him as he kept hitting the wall. The more Arashi hit the wall, the angrier he grew, which, for a short while, dissuaded Masashi from going any nearer to him. "If you could tell me what's bothering you, I'm sure we could get through this much more easily."

"And why should I?!" Arashi yelled as he stopped his hitting to catch his breath. "Th-This has nothing to do with you!"

Seeing the kindled wrath in his eyes, Masashi backed off a bit. He wanted to say that Arashi would not hurt him, but given how emotionally unsteady he was, he knew better than to put himself at risk. Safety came first.

"Well, even so, I think I can help you," Masashi replied. "Maybe with my help, you can figure out how to resolve your problem."

"But what if your advice doesn't help at all?!"

"Only one way to find out, don't you think?"

For a few seconds, Arashi only looked at him, his fists shaking, his teeth clenched, as if he were already keen to reject his suggestion. Since what Arashi needed right now was someone calm and not someone willing to agree to whatever he wanted to do, Masashi himself stayed still as he looked back, not wanting to give in to him with any signs of fear.

"I… I don't like this, you know…" Arashi said after a while, his voice sad and oddly quiet. "Y-You think I want to be angry? Well, I don't! But… it's the first thing that I naturally do whenever something like this happens! I-I should've learned how to stop it, but I didn't!" And it was then that Arashi began to weep once more. "And thanks to it… I made an awful mistake!"

"What is it?" Masashi asked softly.

Arashi lowered his head. "I… I acted badly toward Haruka when she was about to be executed!"

Masashi gasped. Of all the things that he had expected to be the root of his troubles, he had not foreseen that at all.

"She was only trying to apologize to me for what she'd done!" Arashi said, looking more and more distraught. "But… I… I let my temper get the best of me! I said she'd betrayed me! I pushed her away! She thought that I didn't want to be her friend anymore… But… that's not true! I didn't mean that at all, and thanks to that… she died thinking we were no longer friends!

"I only realized that what I'd done was wrong after she was dead… By then, it was all too late…" Arashi continued. "I didn't like what I'd done at all… I kept making the same mistake again and again, and I couldn't stop thinking about it! That's why… I thought I needed to apologize to her somehow. She was dead, but I needed to show somehow that I was sorry!"

"Ah! Is that why… you asked Hikari that question earlier?" Masashi said, recalling when Arashi had, for a short while, broken out of his eerily quiet spell.

"Y-Yeah… I'd just remembered that," Arashi answered. "I was hoping she could channel Haruka's ghost, and I'd tell her in the flesh that I was sorry for rejecting her… But… Hikari said she couldn't do it… So… Haruka… She's gone… forever…"

Then Arashi raised his leg and kicked the nearby table. "_Why did I do that?! Why didn't my mind tell me to stop?!_"

Masashi stood frozen as Arashi kept sobbing. However reckless the pyrotechnician might be, he was certainly well aware of his misgivings and flaws, and his greatest flaw had made him do something that he could now only look back with shame. And the worst part was that to him, there was no way that he could fix this; Haruka was dead, after all, and since Hikari had apparently lost access to her powers, there was no way to get the two together and have them reconcile.

_Is there truly no way to get Arashi to move on?_ Masashi thought.

Simply telling him to forget all about it would clearly not work; to him, he had done Haruka a great misdeed, and something of that nature could not be easily forgotten. But telling him to keep thinking about it would not help, either; Arashi would still be filled with shame, and there was no telling what he might do later if he were to keep going down that path.

"Well, don't you think that this isn't what Haruka would want?" Masashi asked. "I don't think she'd want to see you like this. I'm sure she's already forgiven you."

Arashi glared at him. "Y-You don't know that for sure! There's only one way to be sure, and that's by hearing it from her!"

_Oh… I should've figured that approach wouldn't work,_ Masashi thought as he tried to find another way to resolve this. The most important thing to think about was that Arashi knew what his problem was, and now he needed an answer.

"Hey, Arashi… I can imagine how you feel right now," Masashi said. "You truly want to apologize to Haruka. It's understandable that you want forgiveness."

"R-Really? You're not gonna say it's stupid?" Arashi said. "I-I'm not stupid, you know… I can't apologize to a dead woman, can I?"

"Well, no, but that's the point," Masashi said. "Since she can't forgive you, the only one who can still forgive you in this case is you."

"Me?"

"Yeah. You," Masashi said. "But right now, you can't forgive yourself. Am I right?"

"Um… I guess so."

"What can you do, then, to make you forgive yourself?"

"I… I…" Arashi muttered. "I don't know… I-I haven't thought about it that way at all."

"So what's in your mind now?"

"Well… I don't want this to ever happen again!" Arashi answered as he raised his head a little. "I don't want my anger to make me do something I'll regret later! I… I want to change!"

Masashi smiled. "Looks like you've got a goal in mind. That's pretty good."

"Yeah, but…" Arashi sighed as he lowered his head. "It's so, so hard! It's easy to say it, but when it comes down to it, it wins every time!"

"Then you need to better yourself to change that," Masashi replied, looking him right in the eye. "You can't let your anger get the better of you anymore. That's the goal. And, yes, you'll make mistakes along the way… but we're supposed to learn from our mistakes. If you feel like you want to give up, remember Haruka and the other people you've made unhappy with your anger."

"R… Right! That's right!" Arashi said with a burst of excitement. "I need to try not to make the same mistake again! Thanks for helping me see this, Masashi!"

"Oh, well, it's no problem," Masashi said, smiling a little as he was glad that things were one step closer to becoming normal.

* * *

The dinner meal was to begin in a few minutes, and in the meantime, most of the students had gathered in the dining hall and talking about sundry topics to kill time. The only two students that were absent were Sayua and Tanjiro, both of whom were likely still doing their investigation.

"I must say, I enjoy you most like this," Maiha said to her tablemate, Arashi, who was trying to look as calm as he could be. "To see you make a mess out of everything shocked me at first, but it simply became boring. If you keep up that demeanor of yours, you will have done us all a great service, commoner."

"Y-Yeah, well… I've got that!" Arashi said nothing else as he bit his lip and glanced elsewhere. Masashi could see him clench his fists, but he seemed to be muttering something to stop himself from getting angry.

Meanwhile, Kumi was talking happily with Mari and Sister Hikari, the latter of whom Masashi had suggested that Arashi go to for help. Unfortunately, however, Arashi insisted that he did not need to go to her; this was a problem that he must take care of by himself, and much as Masashi wanted to disagree, he sensed that insisting otherwise might undo the progress that he had just made. Thus, he had stayed quiet and let Arashi have his way for the time being. As for the others, Sorao and Futaba, both of whom were the targets of Maiha's watching, were happily talking with each other, and Hikari and Abraham were by themselves as usual, looking little interested in making small talk with others.

"Ah, Murphy, how are you doing this evening?" Haruyuki asked, who sat next to Murphy and Red Mask.

"Not too bad," the Irishman answered. "I've been killing some time in the arts and crafts room in the palace."

"Oh, is that so?" Haruyuki said. "What was the subject matter?"

"Nothing much. It was only a desert, something not hard to draw," Murphy answered.

Haruyuki raised his eyes a bit. "Oh? Not something about your homeland? Unless Ireland is much more of a desert than I assumed…"

Murphy let out a short but somewhat unamused laugh. "Oh, believe me, I plan to draw something like that. I was simply practicing with my desert drawing, though I ended up using a bit more yellow than I thought. I'm no artist, of course. I can't draw well enough to save myself, if you want to know."

"So it's something I'm not going to find any time soon in an art museum, right?" Red Mask said.

Haruyuki chuckled. "Whether or not it be in an art museum, at the very least, I would be rather interested in seeing what you come up with in your depiction of Ireland. I'd imagine that there might be farmers that work hard under the sun as they tend to their fields of potatoes and other such crops."

At that point, however, Murphy frowned. "You had a good description up until you mentioned 'potatoes'. I want to hear nothing about it, believe you me."

"What, really? I tried potatoes once, and they were tasty!" Red Mask replied blithely.

Murphy shook his head. "You're a thief, aren't you? If you stole all the potatoes in the world and buried them in the Sahara Desert, I would be in your debt."

"Well, I could possibly do the first part, but I don't know about the second one!" she answered, looking not at all serious in her words.

Meanwhile, Haruyuki looked at the scene with widened eyes, setting his right hand over his mouth. "I'm rather surprised to see that you loathe the crop that much, Murphy. I would have naturally thought otherwise."

"Yeah, well, I was exaggerating a bit with the whole burying thing, but you get the spirit of my words, don't you?" the farmer said. "Not a damn thing more about it, I ask of you. If you want me to talk about other parts of Ireland, I'll gladly do so."

Haruyuki smiled. "I see… Well, I'll gladly take up your offer if I should feel like it."

It was such an odd conversation, Masashi thought, having thought it best that he stay out of it, as he wanted to hear more about the man. On their first meeting, Murphy had told him not to talk about potato farming, and yet the more he insisted that the others talk about something else, the more he wanted to find out what the root of his loathing was. Even though Masashi doubted that it was anything that weighty, it was still odd enough that he would like to hear more about it.

Just around the time when Faye had finished cooking, and Abraham had finished distributing the dishes to everyone, however, the starboard door to the dining hall opened, and in came the blithesome president of Team Tomi, her dreary secretary in tow.

"Hey, everyone! We've found something important!" Sayua declared, after which all eyes were on her.

"What is it?" Futaba asked, befuddled by the cheerleader's entry.

"Well, Tanjiro and I have been taking a look around the hidden library, and believe it or not, we found something that's gotta have something to do with what's going on!" Sayua answered with a hint of pridefulness.

"And by 'we', she means mostly me," Tanjiro muttered meekly, though hardly anyone seemed to pay any heed to it.

"So is it that book you're holding?" Faye asked.

Sayua set her free hand on her hip confidently. "Well, duh! Take a look!"

She showed everyone the cover, which said: "Recent Developments of the Use of Augmented and Virtual Reality Technologies for Clinical Purposes".

_Hey, wait a minute… That's the book I saw the first time at the library!_ Masashi thought, recognizing the title. Yes, it was the same night when he had discovered the secret that Atsushi had been bidden to hide from the others, and if he remembered correctly, there had been something about the title that had struck him as familiar. Yes, it had something to do with a research lab that was involved with the book's topic, but even back then, he had had only a faint recollection of what it was.

"What's so important about that?" Sorao asked. "I mean, the only relevant part, if you ask me, is the 'Augmented' part, and that's because Monokuma changed one of the rides here to use AR."

"Yeah, that's what I thought at first, but once we read the book, we spotted a certain name! Tell them, Tanjiro!" Sayua said.

Tanjiro sighed as he took the book from her, flipped to a certain page, and showed the group its contents.

"One particularly valuable source of data of the experiments shown herein is the small but growing research center called Brightmere Research," Tanjiro read aloud. "The group has been dedicated to studying the use of these technologies to treat patients. One good example of its use is the simulation of insects meant to treat those who suffer from fears of such. By simulating the fear in a laboratory environment through AR, the researchers had much success in treating the participants. The use of these technologies for psychological treatment is still new, but we foresee greater and more exciting developments in the future."

Once Tanjiro was done, the whole group looked at one another with a mix of shock and confusion.

"The group's name is… Brightmere Research?" Futaba said. "I do not know why, but I suspect that I have heard the name before."

"Hmm… maybe you heard it on the news?" Sorao suggested. "From what I can tell, it seems that this research center is kinda big in the AR/VR development world or whatever."

"In that case, since the amusement park is named Brightmere Mirthyard," Maiha said, "it means that the one behind all this is Brightmere Research, is it not?"

"Wait, are we sure that this isn't a coincidence?" Abraham asked. "It may be that this Brightmere Research group is behind all this, but isn't 'Brightmere' an English name?"

"Well, it certainly is made up of English words, but it's definitely a word I've never heard of," Murphy said. "I'm certain that the research center made it up to have it as a name."

"Then we can agree that Brightmere Research is the one responsible for this," Maiha replied. "It is the owner of this amusement park, it appears."

"Y-You mean the evil warlock behind this is in a research group?" Kumi said, shaking a little. "A-Are we, um, part of an experiment, then?"

Masashi too hardly knew what to think. On one hand, he now had more information about what was going on, and the questions that he had about this amusement park were starting to be answered. But on the other hand, it still did not answer the question of how the research center had managed to get ahold of not only eighteen students but also their loved ones as hostages for the motive given a few days ago. If this were some kind of twisted experiment, then it meant that even if he set aside the ethical violations, this was far too out of scope for a small research center dedicated to AR and VR technologies. It was too unbelievable, and yet he had no information to gainsay what Sayua and Tanjiro had found.

"Hey, come to think of it…" Masashi said. "Sayua, you guys found it in the hidden library, right? But shouldn't this information have been found earlier? After all, Mari and Atsushi were investigating the library before Atsushi's murder."

"Yes, that's right, we were," Mari said, unbothered by the sudden glances at her. "But we only skimmed the books as part of our investigation to look for things like notes and whatnot. It would've taken us far longer if we had actually read every single book there."

"Hmm… That is true," Sister Hikari said. "Still, it's good that we now know about it. Maybe if we learn more about this killing game, we can find a way to end it."

"Duh! That's why Tanjiro and I will keep looking in the library!" Sayua said. "I bet we'll find something that'll get us out of this crazy mess!"

Haruyuki chuckled. "I'd be thankful if it were that easy, but something tells me that the mastermind behind this must have taken that into account."

"Of course. The information clears up our circumstances somewhat," Futaba said as gracefully as always, "but information alone does not help us escape. And if this is an experiment of some kind, I am sure that the mastermind has cut off all avenues of escape.

"Indeed, the only course of action that still remains is waiting for rescue forces to come save us," the black-haired lady continued. "If the one behind this is a small research center, then I am certain that it cannot escape the law forever. Once we are rescued, I shall be sure to have the research center tried for its foul crimes!"

"Brava, Lady Inoshishi!" Sorao said, clapping a little, while a few of the others looked a bit more hopeful of their situation. "That's the kind of motivational talk we need!"

"M-Motivational? That's not it at all…" Hikari mumbled, looking even unhappier than usual. She must not have liked the thought that the group might be being experimented upon.

"Anyway," Futaba said, "our dinner is getting colder and colder. We ought to resume the meal now."

As the group headed back to their seats, Sorao approached Tanjiro. "Hey, what were you doing with that Sayua, anyway?"

Tanjiro turned meeker in his expression, his eyes showing a little anxiety. "She, uh, made me search the library with her. And even then, it was mostly me that did the searching… It's part of being in Team Tomi. Her fan club, that is."

Sorao took a glance at Sayua, whom Tanjiro was to sit next to, and who seemed too busy eating her food to be paying attention to the conversation. "Wow. I actually feel sorry for you this time. Let's hope she doesn't kill you, buddy."

"Yeah, well… she's harmless, anyway. Now if you'll excuse me…" Tanjiro sighed as he headed to his seat.

_What's up with them both?_ Masashi thought as Sorao headed back to Futaba with a happy disposition. As far as he knew, Sorao and Tanjiro had known each other before the killing game, and apparently, they had lived in the same apartment block since their childhood. And yet, there was no feeling of friendliness between them; there was no outright hatred, but Masashi could tell that there was something about Sorao that unnerved the writer.

* * *

**Here's the chapter! This time, the Free Time Events are with Sister Hikari, Abraham, and Mari, and a bit more of the plot is revealed! Also, Sayua makes Tanjiro join her fan club, and Arashi goes through a bit of a struggle, to say the least. It's kind of exciting stuff, and of course, it's all build-up for the next killing and other things to come. **

**Anyway, as usual, I'd like to hear your thoughts, predictions, and speculation in the reviews! One thing I'd like to know in particular is your thoughts on the remaining characters; I wonder how much they've changed since Chapter 1.**


	17. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (3)

The next morning, Masashi woke up and saw, from a glance out the window, that the sea seemed to be a bit rougher today, and the heavens were a little cloudier as well. Though it was nothing too concerning, Masashi feared that a storm might soon come, and he could only wonder how much that might change things. After all, would the rescue forces be able to find them in that kind of weather? But in the end, he trusted that Futaba was right in her expectation that they would come sooner or later; the small research center that apparently owned this amusement park could not continue its twisted experiment forever. And with Futaba's efforts to stop any killings from happening, all the group must do now was wait. At least, that was the plan.

Once ready, Masashi left the room and saw, of all people, Red Mask among the sundry blossoms in the garden. From what he had seen of her so far, she seemed to be a woman who liked to go on her own flow, so it was somewhat uncommon to see her up this early. She was leaning down on her knees as if looking for something.

"Hey, is something the matter?" Masashi asked as he approached her.

"Oh!" Red Mask exclaimed before looking at him. "Oh, it's only you! Well, I'm, uh, only looking for something!"

"Well, could I help?"

"Oh, no, no, there's really no need to!" she insisted, showing a rather nervous smile. "I've simply dropped something, and it shouldn't be that hard—_Oh!_"

The lady thief then reached her hand out toward a patch of daisies and grabbed the thing so quickly that Masashi could not see what it was.

"What was that?" Masashi asked, curious.

Red Mask giggled as she hid the thing in one of her pockets and wagged her index finger with the other hand. "Hee-hee-hee! Sorry, Masashi, but I can't tell you, or else I'd be at a disadvantage, you see!"

_What does that even mean?_ Masashi thought, growing more befuddled as she rushed off to the stairs to the upper decks. From her reaction, however, he guessed that it was either a very personal belonging of hers, or something related to her business as a phantom thief, as such a business was naturally full of secrecy.

As Masashi headed up to the dining hall, when he arrived at the third deck, he saw Arashi standing by the lounge door.

"Ah! Masashi!" Arashi said. "I've, uh, been waiting for you!"

"Hmm? What for?" Masashi said.

"Well… I just want to let you know… I've messed up again! And it was that lousy thief woman's fault!" Arashi clenched his fists. "She did me wrong last night!"

"Another prank, was it?" Masashi said, recalling the morning when he had talked with Haruyuki and Red Mask. The thief had made him give the pyrotechnician a cup of soda that had truly been a cup of apple cider vinegar. Needless to say, Atsushi had been very wroth when scolding him and the thief.

"Sh-She gave me tea that was way too bitter!" Arashi said. "I-I had told her to give me some sweet tea to drink, so you can imagine how pissed off I was after drinking it! If Sorao hadn't stopped me, I would've taught her a lesson she wouldn't have forgotten!"

_Oh, man, troublemakers everywhere…_ Masashi sighed. Even if her pranks were harmless, that did not change how nettlesome and tiresome it was to deal with them.

"Arashi, don't let her get to you," he replied. "If you get angry at her, you're only doing what she wants you to do. Try to brush it off the next time it happens."

"I-I'll try!" Arashi said, standing much more upright. "I'll make sure to remember what you've said!"

"Good," Masashi said. "By the way… are you _really_ sure that you don't want to ask Sister Hikari for help? And if you don't want to ask her, then how about Faye?"

Arashi groaned as he shook his head. "No, no! I don't want to bother Sister Hikari and Miss Nirigiri with this! They're already busy enough as it is! But as for you, it's different! I feel that I can turn to you for help any time!"

_Oh… I guess he recognizes that I have nothing special going on._ Nonetheless, Masashi would rather that Arashi turn to him for guidance. Perhaps once enough time should pass, he could get the pyrotechnician to become a much steadier and better-adjusted member of society. Then the days of grief that he would bring others with his wrathful outbursts would come to an end at last. Now that would make things around here much more peaceful.

Arashi insisted that he stay behind and calm down a bit, so Masashi kept his way to the dining hall by himself. When Masashi arrived, besides the aforesaid thief, there were also Futaba, Sorao, Tanjiro, and Abraham. And if the noises from the kitchen were any sign, Faye was also there as well.

"Good morning," Masashi said to the others.

"Yeah, good morning," Tanjiro said a bit meekly. He was sitting by himself, but given his recent membership of Team Tomi, Masashi knew that Sayua would be sitting next to him.

"Hey, Masashi!" Sorao said, beckoning him to come. "I've actually been thinking about something for a while now."

"Huh? What is it?" Masashi said.

"According to you, your tablet showed what your Ultimate talent was, right?" Sorao began. "You said you were called the Ultimate Lucky Student."

"Oh, yeah, that's right…" Admittedly, Masashi had forgotten about that rather puzzling mystery, but since the title was hardly of any prestige, it naturally had bestowed him no benefit at all. No one was impressed by someone with that kind of title, after all. Still, it was an unanswered question, and he would rather that he found the answer to why he was called so.

Sorao leaned back against his seat. "With the whole revelation that we've been trapped here by some research center and whatnot, I think there's a good explanation for that, if it helps. You see, everyone else here is an Ultimate, right? And scientist dudes like it when things are, well, _consistent_ and whatnot, so they might have thought that it would be rather odd to have one of their subjects stand out with no title."

"Uh huh, that sounds about right."

"And that's why they decided to give you that title," Sorao said. "You're called the Ultimate Lucky Student because you're pretty much a normal dude. It's like a courtesy title, if you will, though in this case, it's kind of mean-spirited to call you lucky. So what do you think?"

"Hmm…"

On one hand, there was no evidence backing up Sorao's explanation, but on the other hand, it made a bit of sense, and it sounded like something that the mastermind might do.

"I think you're on to something," Masashi said, thinking it to be the likeliest answer. After all, he could not think of any other possible answers to this question.

"It certainly explains everything neatly," Futaba said, who sat next to Sorao as usual. "Of course, I hardly care about whatever explanation the wicked scientists had in mind when they chose to give you that title. It does not change our circumstances a whit."

"Yeah, I don't like to admit it, but she has a point here," Masashi said. Much as he appreciated Sorao for the explanation, whatever the true answer might be, he doubted that it would change anything. Thus, he kept the explanation as something to resolve that mystery for now.

Not long after, Sayua, Mari, Arashi, Maiha, Kumi, and Sister Hikari walked into the dining hall, but Masashi grew a little curious upon seeing the storyteller; for some reason, Kumi's face showed not even a little bit of happiness, his eyes not only half shut but also showing a hint of fearful carefulness. In contrast, Arashi looked much more normal, though still somewhat quieter than he had usually been before Atsushi's murder. It was downright weird to see such a sight, as it was Kumi that had looked to be in better condition yesterday; could so much have changed in only a day's time?

"Hey, uh, good morning," Masashi said as he approached Kumi's table.

Kumi looked at him a bit fearfully. "U-Um… G-Good morning. I-I… I…" It was then that he yawned and looked downwards.

"What's wrong?" Masashi asked.

"I-I… I… kept seeing them…" Kumi answered, shaking a little as if undergoing some kind of cold spell. "L-Lady Haruka… and S-Sir Atsushi… a-and Monokuma! He got both of them, and there was so much blood, and, and, and, and, _and!_"

Kumi let out a short shriek, which got the others to look at him for a few seconds before they went back to their business, once it was apparent that Kumi was in no physical danger, whence his tired look.

Sister Hikari sighed as she faced Masashi, weariness all over her face. "From what I could tell… Kumi had a nightmare last night. It was so bad that he had much trouble going back to sleep."

Kumi nodded slowly. "I-I'm sorry… I-I couldn't face the evil beast… But I-I couldn't go back to sleep right away! I wasn't brave enough to see him again... And moreover… _they_ were there as well…"

"What do you mean, 'they?" Masashi asked.

Kumi gulped. "M-Monsters… Evil fairies, goblins, and the like. They lurked in my room, and since I always have my night light on when sleeping, I saw a few of them sneaking off to the darkness... Even though I saw a few good fairies upon waking up, they left in a few minutes, so I had only Sir Teddybane by my side…" He then took out his teddy bear and hugged it as if he had just reunited with a dear friend of his. "I-If you hadn't driven them away, I would've been slain, that's for sure!"

"Oh, how terrible!" Sister Hikari said. "It must've been rather frightening!"

"Y-Yes… Even after they were gone, I-I couldn't go back to sleep," Kumi continued, the dread in his voice growing stronger. "Not only were Monokuma and his underlings there in my dreams, but I also knew the monsters that I'd seen in my room could come back any time soon! Monsters within… Monsters without… They were everywhere! I don't know when I fell asleep, but I thank Sir Teddybane and my lucky stars that I was unharmed!"

Masashi looked askance at the storyteller as he kept thanking his so-called companion. Though there was no doubt that Kumi had undergone such a frightful and dreadful nightmare, Kumi had also included in his tale such fantastic elements as made it hard to tell whether they too had been of his dream, or whether Kumi had hallucinated them somehow. With the truthfulness in his voice, it seemed that it was neither, for Masashi believed that he had made none of it up, and yet Masashi could not believe that there truly had been evil creatures in his room. The likeliest explanation was that the sight of evil creatures in his room was an unlucky aftermath begotten by the shock that he had experienced from having to see the two lost participants' dead bodies.

"Well, rest assured, those were simply nightmares," Sister Hikari said. "Frightening as nightmares are, they cannot hurt you. I know it'll be tough to remember that whenever you have to deal with them, but all the nightmares will do is frighten you. You'll be safe, and if you should feel otherwise, you can always go to me. I'll keep you safe, I promise!"

"I-I'll try to keep that in mind," Kumi weakly answered. "S-Still… they were so scary! I-I don't wanna see something like that again!"

Sister Hikari chuckled. "Then I'll cook you some warm soup. It should help you relieve some stress and make you feel a bit braver. And later, we can read one of your stories together. I think reading a story with a happy ending will help you feel better! And since you're the Ultimate Storyteller, I have no doubt that your writing is very entertaining!"

Kumi smiled a little. "Th-Thanks, Sister Hikari. As long as you're around, maybe everything will be all right."

* * *

Today was yet another day. Of course, it was good that it be uneventful; indeed, there was nothing that he yearned for more than a peaceful day, especially in this killing game, where any interesting time led to an undesirable end.

Masashi walked around the woodland kingdom, wanting to find someone to talk with. Eventually, he found Tanjiro standing around in the merry-go-round room.

"Oh, hey," the blue-haired writer said. "Is there something you need?"

Apparently, he and Sayua were taking a break from looking in the hidden library, so to pass the time, he was reading a book that he had gotten from the library. Apparently, the book was a biography of Mozart.

"I thought it'd be good if we talked a little bit," Masashi said.

"Oh… Well, I guess it'll be good to have some company for a change," Tanjiro said. "What do you want to talk about?"

Masashi had one question in mind already. "To begin with, you wrote _The Koto Players_ trilogy, right?"

"Oh, yes, and if I remember correctly, you said that a friend of yours liked it very much," Tanjiro answered. "You haven't read it, though, have you?"

"Oh, no, I haven't," Masashi answered. "So what exactly is it about?"

"Well… it's about people that play the koto, as you may guess. The books are more like historical novels than an in-depth exploration of the instrument's history," Tanjiro answered as the two walked around the merry-go-round. "I originally finished it as one book only, but once I was done, I found myself wanting to write more and more."

"Really? How so?"

Tanjiro fiddled with a strand of his blue hair. "Well… I'm pretty interested in musical history in general. There's always something to write about when it comes to music, especially how it plays a role in people's lives. Can you imagine what our modern world would be like if there were no music?"

Masashi imagined such a thing. "Sheesh…. It'd be pretty terrible, if you ask me."

"Exactly. Universally, music touches our very souls," Tanjiro replied. "It's always interesting to learn about how music has changed throughout the ages. And since I like to study the academic subject of history, I don't think I'll ever be in any want of material to write about."

"Well, that's good. I bet you really wanted to publish your trilogy after you were done."

Tanjiro sighed. "Actually… I didn't want to publish it at first. It was only something that I wanted to write about, and I always liked to write stories as a hobby, so I didn't have publishing in mind."

Masashi raised his eyes. "Really? So what changed your mind, then?"

Tanjiro scratched his head. "It was the father of two of my siblings. Oh, I suppose I should mention that in my family, I have a few different siblings. I have a twin brother, one half-brother of one father, two half-sisters of another father, and one half-sister of yet another father. Overall, there are four fathers, and the man I'm talking about is the third one."

_Wh-Whoa… What's up with the high number of siblings and fathers?!_ Masashi thought, astounded. _What is going on with your family?!_

Tanjiro sighed. "I know, it's pretty confusing, but the situation that led to my family being so is a bit, uh, _complicated_, to say the least. Anyway, the father, who was essentially the typical salaryman, encouraged me to try to publish it. I wasn't sure at first, but after a supportive talk with my mother, I, well, thought to go for it! And, well, the trilogy didn't do too badly, really. The books were no bestsellers, but they did fairly well for books by a then-unknown writer. I felt motivated enough to write more. It was my fifth book that got me into stardom, I suppose."

"That must've been pretty wonderful news for you!" Masashi said. "What's the book about?"

Tanjiro chuckled shyly. "Oh, well, it's the tale of Italian violin makers that takes place in World War II, but it also takes place in the modern day. The tale also covers the violin makers' modern descendants."

"Wow, that's pretty interesting," Masashi replied. Though it was not something that he would normally read, meeting the writer in the flesh and hearing about it from him raised his interest in it a little.

Tanjiro had a look of uncertainty on him, however. "Are you really just saying that, or do you really mean it?"

"Well… I admit, I don't think your stuff is the kind I'd pick up in the bookshop first," Masashi answered. "But, you know, I think that after seeing what you're like, I'd like to know more about you by reading your books."

"Oh, really?" Tanjiro said shyly, his cheeks reddening a little. "Well, I certainly appreciate the praise. It's always swell when my voice reaches another person through writing. I admit, I'm not the best speaker, so I think I'm at my best in my works."

_Yeah, I don't think you're of the kind that likes to talk a lot_, Masashi thought. In any case, once they were all out of here, he might go to a bookshop and see whether it had any of Tanjiro's works. If not, then he could always order the books online.

Once they were done with their walk, Tanjiro sighed, though it was one of relief rather than of tiredness. "Well, it's been good talking with you. I certainly like that you seem interested in my work. Hopefully, once you get the chance to read one of my books, you'll like it."

Masashi smiled. "Hey, what are your plans for your writing career now? Forget the fact that we're in this awful situation right now."

Tanjiro thought for a bit. "Hmm… I've written two more books since my work about the Italian violin makers came out. I'm not sure what my eighth book will be about, but I have a few ideas in mind. Maybe I can speak to you about them later."

* * *

Masashi walked over to the arts and crafts room in the Egyptian palace and saw Murphy painting on a canvas. It seemed that he was trying to draw some kind of grassland, though it looked rather empty and boring.

"Oh, it's you," Murphy said. "Is there something that you want? I'm painting something here, and I'm making a good amount of progress."

"Well, would you like to chat with me a bit?" Masashi asked. "I haven't talked with you a whole lot, so I think it'll be good to hang out a little."

Murphy scoffed. "You want to know more about me, don't you? Well, I can't blame you. I'm an Irishman, and I don't think you often see someone like me in your daily life."

"Oh, yes, you have that right," Masashi answered. Though he had seen traces of Irish culture around, such as the Irish pub that he had seen at Osaka at one point, he essentially had no idea on what Irishmen were like. "To begin with, as a foreign exchange student, why did you choose Japan of all countries to study in?"

Masashi remembered asking the same question on their first meeting, but he had happened to mention potato farming, which had only nettled Murphy and stopped him from answering the question. Therefore, he thought it best that he make no mention of it this time.

Murphy crossed his arms as he thought about it. "Well, to put it simply, it was a good change of pace from my life in Ireland. I had a certain problem, and my parents wanted me to get into higher education in Japan to get me away."

"Huh, what was the problem?" Masashi asked.

Murphy frowned. "I'd prefer not to talk about it. I can't stand talking about potatoes, you know."

_So it's about that, huh…_ Masashi thought. _I wonder what his problem with them is, but I'm not sure how to approach him about it._

"Is there anything about Japan that you like in particular?" Masashi asked, figuring that it was best that he talk about something else in the meantime.

Murphy thought as he raised his straw hat a bit. "Well, that's a bit hard to answer. I suppose that the whole environment is pretty good. Japan is very different from Ireland, and in some way, it's incredibly refreshing."

Masashi nodded along. "Well, I'm glad that you like it here in Japan! And I have to say, you speak Japanese surprisingly well."

Murphy chuckled. "It took a lot of practice to master the four basic parts: speaking, listening, reading, and writing. Japanese isn't too hard to speak, but my God, the writing system takes a bit of getting used to. The hiragana and katakana are easy to learn, but I don't know how you can remember hundreds of kanji and the different readings."

Now it was Masashi that chuckled. "Ah, well, we learn it early in our childhood at school, and we practice reading it a lot, so generally, it's no problem for us. But for you, you've started learning it a bit later in your life, so I'd assume it'd be more difficult for you."

Murphy scoffed. "It's difficult, all right. I'm no intellectual, really, so I find it to take much more effort than farming. But I'm not complaining about it. Reading sentences written only in hiragana became surprisingly tiresome in the later parts of my studies. And the kanji are not so complex as the grammar, if you ask me. Learning the correct use of particles took a lot of time, I assure you!"

Masashi chuckled. "Hearing a foreigner's perspective on this is kind of amusing, if you ask me. I don't think it's difficult, really."

"It's a matter of perspective. You've been speaking the tongue your whole life, so it's all second nature to you," Murphy replied, sounding somewhat moody.

"You have a point there…" Masashi said. "Anyway, even though you complain about how difficult it was, you were still really motivated to learn Japanese and try to become fluent in it."

"Oh, yes, that's right. I couldn't stand how things were back home," Murphy answered. "Spending many hours on my Japanese studies was the cost of getting away, but I gladly paid it. And I don't regret it at all. Besides the change of environment, I also get to talk with a lot more people and learn new perspectives on life and such."

"Speaking of that, since you're a foreign exchange student," Masashi said, "you're staying with a host family, right?"

Murphy nodded. "The family's made up of a married couple and their son. I don't know them too well, but they're kind folk, that's for sure. I even go out with them and do fun things together every now and then.

"And yet it's funny…" the Irishman continued, a hint of dreariness on his face. "Now that I've been away from Ireland for a long while, I actually miss it a bit."

Masashi raised his eyes a bit. "You miss it? Well, I guess it's natural to be homesick."

"Yes, but it's more than that. It wasn't only my family that I missed," Murphy replied. "It was my whole way of life back in Ireland. I was then living in a completely different culture, and much as I love it in Japan, I also miss Irish culture." Murphy then showed a slight smile. "That's why I'm also studying as much of my native culture as I can. Be it history, music, or literature, I try to learn as much as possible."

"Oh… Well, that's pretty interesting."

The more Murphy talked about his culture, the less grumpy he appeared. He truly seemed driven to reconnect with his roots, and with how knowledgeable he claimed to be, Masashi wanted to hear more about it. After all, it might help him know more about the man.

"Well, it's been good talking with you," Murphy said. Though the look on his face suggested that he was back to his grumpy disposition, his voice suggested otherwise; he seemed rather glad to have talked with him. "I really appreciate that you decided to talk with me."

"Oh, it was nothing. I simply thought that you would like some company," Masashi answered.

Murphy kept his frown, but his eyes suggested that he was delighted to hear that. "Yeah, I won't mind if you come talk with me again. You seem like a rather understanding fellow, so maybe I can tell you a bit more about myself. You'd like that, right?"

Masashi nodded. Maybe next time, he could get him to talk about potatoes without being dismissed.

* * *

"Now what have you come here for? You're not gonna just waste my time, are you?"

Sayua looked at Masashi as she sat on one of the chairs by the pool on the woodland kingdom's main deck. She was taking a break from her usual activities by relaxing under the sun, as the weather, though a bit cloudy, was still good.

Masashi sighed as he tried to come up with a good answer. With his experience with her, he had to make sure not to put pressure on her sense of self, as she was the kind of woman that demanded sheer obedience from those whom she deemed to be her fans.

"Oh, no, I thought that you'd appreciate talking with a fan for a while," Masashi said. "It must be so boring to while away the time without someone by your side."

"Hah, pretty thoughtful of you! I'm glad you've been thinking about your president," Sayua replied. "Why, sure, I'll let you talk with me. Now what do you want to talk about?"

_When you put it that way, I keep wondering why I've chosen to talk with you_, Masashi thought. There were many others with whom he would rather talk, and yet he was here right now, having to act meekly toward this woman.

"For one, you're a cheerleader," Masashi said, thinking her Ultimate talent to be a good topic for conversation. "What's it like being a cheerleader? I'm not really knowledgeable on this kind of thing."

"You're not? Hah, I should've figured, with how bedazzled you were when we first met," Sayua answered.

_Why can't you see I'm trying to be humble about it? _Masashi thought, trying his best to put up with her attitude. He recalled how much Keiko had complained about all the nettlesome duties that she had to do with one of her employers, and with her description, he had no doubt that if she were to ever have to hang out with Sayua, she would find this to be far easier. Such a thought naturally made him feel a little envious of his little sister.

"Well, then again, I don't expect my fans to know _everything_ about me," Sayua replied, seemingly unwitting of his annoyance. "Anyway, to answer your question, being a cheerleader isn't too bad or anything. On our own, we motivate our sports teams by shouting certain chants and doing certain dances, jumps, and whatnot. It's meant to be good eye candy, you know, and the pom-poms certainly help with that."

"Yeah, I get that," Masashi said. "It must take a lot of work, though."

"Oh, you betcha it's tiring!" Sayua replied as she flipped her strawberry blond hair. "Practicing certain formations again and again was tiring as fuck! I had to give up a lot of my free time for it! And I should mention that it hurts a lot. Things don't always go smoothly, and when we make a mistake, we can feel it in our wrists, necks, ankles, and whatnot. The stunts may look pretty as fuck, but they take a lot of effort, I assure you."

"It's like practicing for something like volleyball," Masashi commented. "It must've taken a lot of commitment from you if you chose not to give up."

He truly meant what he had said; with how she described her activity, it seemed so difficult that there was no need to fake praise. He did not like to admit it, but he understood to some extent why the cheerleader had a rather high opinion of herself.

Sayua smiled. "I'm glad you can see that! Cheerleading is not so easy as you may think it is, and if you can see that, then it's all good. And besides, it's all worth it, trust me. We get the crowd energized, and the sports teams feel more motivated from seeing their supporters all worked up and whatnot."

"With how you describe it, your roles seem really important," Masashi remarked. "I can understand how the athletes rely on your support."

"Oh, yeah, we and the cheering squads are there to excite the fans. Without us, it wouldn't really be the same," Sayua said. "And besides sports competitions, we also perform at concerts and graduation ceremonies. Not bad, don't you agree? It's a very fulfilling task."

"Is that why you chose to become a cheerleader?" Masashi asked, trying to steer the conversation toward a more personal topic. Lovely as it was to learn about cheerleading, he wanted to learn more about her as well.

Sayua stopped to think for a few seconds. "Hmm… Well, if I had to answer, I'd say that you're right on the mark. Whenever I saw my school's cheerleading squad practice after school, I would notice how happy the girls were. I then thought that becoming a cheerleader would make me and my old man happy, so I joined the team."

"Huh, is that so…" Masashi said. "What's this about your father, by the way?"

It was then that Sayua looked startled for once and gave him a blank stare. "Wait, did I really say that?"

"Yes, you mentioned your 'old man'," Masashi said, "so I assume you were talking about your father."

"Well… none of your business!" Sayua said, looking a bit flustered now. "It's something you don't need to know about, all right? Even if you're a fan, there are things I have to keep hidden from you."

The reaction was more telling than she had intended; if it were nothing special, then given how much she loved to talk about herself, she would have no problem with talking about it. But it was clear that there was something going on with her father that she preferred to keep under wraps.

"Uh, all right, then," Masashi said, thinking it best that he press her no further on this. "Let's not talk about that anymore."

Sayua smirked. "Good to see you respecting boundaries, buddy. Who knows, you may make one of my best fans yet. There's a lot of competition, though, so you'd better keep it up!"

"I'll keep that in mind," Masashi said, wondering what she wanted to keep hidden from him.

* * *

It was sometime later that Masashi thought to head over to the dining hall to get something to eat. On the way there, however, as he passed by the lounge door, he heard two voices coming thence. Curious, Masashi opened the door slightly and peeked in.

"It's all good, isn't it, Lady Inoshishi?" Sorao said. He and Futaba were sitting together on a seat, looking attentively at each other. "Abraham and Faye have managed to move all the dangerous things from the storeroom to the second exhibit room, so the chances of another killing should be much lower now."

Futaba nodded, and yet she still showed a bit of uncertainty on her face. "I would normally agree, Sorao, but you must not forget about Monokuma."

"What about him?"

She sighed. "Have you forgotten that as well? He gave us a motive last time to push us into killing. Thankfully, Atsushi wisely advised me to destroy all the motive videos, and so they are no longer a problem. But I suspect that Monokuma has another motive ready for us."

"What, really?" Sorao clicked his tongue. "Well, we'll cross that bridge if that happens. In the meantime, maybe we should talk about something less grim. All this talk about killing is a real downer, I tell you."

"Hmm… I suppose so," Futaba said. "Now, then, is there anything that you would like to talk about in particular?"

Sorao cracked a small smile. "Well… Ever since you brought up your foreign friend, I've been wanting to know how you two met. I believe her name is… Magdalena Engracia Pinto."

Futaba chuckled as she scratched her right cheek a bit. "I'm surprised that you remember the name. It's rather long and foreign, is it not?"

"Hey, I promised myself that I'd try to better my memory," Sorao said light-heartedly. "I have to do a better job at remembering the important things."

"Well, I am glad to see that you are trying to fix one of your weaknesses. In any case, you wish to know about my encounter with Maggie, it seems." Futaba stopped for a few seconds before answering. "Very well, then. First things first, you must know that she is no figure skater, unlike me. Instead, she is a flamenco dancer."

"Flamenco dancer? Ah, yes, she does that Spanish dance. I've heard of it," Sorao replied, nodding along. "So did you two meet one day out on the street, then, or was there some special event you two happened to see each other?"

Futaba sighed, her expression growing a little more serious. "Well, our meeting was made in rather rare circumstances. It happened that there was an international tournament of figure skating, and I was naturally one of the participants. At one point, when it was not my turn to dance for the judges and the crowd, I stumbled upon Maggie, and though we bickered at first, we eventually found that we had a bit more in common than we had first thought. It soon came to pass that we became fast friends."

"Oh, that's good!" Sorao said with much glee. "It's good that you two managed to find a connection to each other."

"Yes… a connection," Futaba muttered with a hint of sorrow. "Anyway, though our friendship had been made, it was a later event in the same occasion that truly made it steadfast. After I performed, someone told the judges that I had tried to cheat by sabotaging one of my rivals, which accusation I assure you was nothing but a foul falsehood. Nonetheless, my good name, for a short while, was sullied."

Sorao widened his eyes. "Oh… Oh, that's not good. I hope the liar was later caught."

"Indeed, the culprit got her just deserts. It turned out to be my coach, who had been rather envious of me for a long while. My coach was the same one that trained my mother, who had become far more successful in life, whence her envy," Futaba continued, her expression showing a mix of glee and bitterness. "In any case, it was thanks to Maggie that her plot was exposed. Maggie's witness account proved that I could not have sabotaged my rival during the supposed time, and so my coach was punished with a suspension in her teaching credentials."

"Well, it's good that the tale had a happy ending," Sorao replied. "I can't imagine what would have happened to you if she had gotten away with it. It truly shows how helpful friends can be at a time of need."

It was then that Futaba sighed and looked at her deputy with a rather unusual look of seriousness.

"Sorao… I… I must confess to you something of great importance," Futaba said, looking a bit squeamish as if she were talking before a whole crowd. Sorao himself became a little shocked, his mouth hung open a little. "Over the last few days, I… I've felt closer and closer to you. The amount of help and relief that you have given me is immeasurable, truly, and for that, I cannot thank you enough for it.

"But… I fear that I must not feel any closer to you," Futaba said, frowning. "That is to say, I cannot cut off the connection that I have with Maggie. After the incident that I had with my former coach, I have spent much of my leisure time with Maggie."

"And what's the problem?" Sorao asked, all his glee quickly disappearing from his face, as if he were embracing himself to hear something that would damper on his fortune.

"I… I think it to be a very special connection. But it is one that I must keep hidden from my parents," Futaba answered a bit more quietly than usual, though Masashi could still hear it. "After all, they expect me to spend my time with my betrothed partner instead."

"W-Wait, hold on," Sorao said, eyes widened. "Wh-What's this about a betrothed partner?"

Futaba sighed. "I am a daughter of the CEO of a great international business conglomerate. To consolidate more power, my father wishes to have me wed to the son of one of his business partners. The son is not a bad man, but…" She shook her head. "I just feel a much closer connection to Maggie."

"Ah... _Aaaaaaaaaaaah…_" Sorao said, shock rushing through his face, as he understood the sentiment behind all her purposely vague speech. Masashi himself was surprised to hear that Futaba felt this way about her friend, but there was no doubt that no one was so shocked by this as Sorao, who could hardly say anything. All this time, he had acted as her deputy, and it even appeared that the two could become an item, but as it turned out, he had misjudged her, to put it lightly.

"Sorao… Please do not misunderstand," Futaba said, appearing a little uncertain now. "Even if Maggie were a man, I would still feel the same way about her. That you are a man is not the reason why I must not become any closer to you."

Judging by her tone, Masashi saw that this was not something that she had said simply to soothe Sorao; she had truly meant it, however awkward she might sound.

"R-Really…" Sorao said dejectedly. "Well… I guess she's waiting for you back home, huh?"

Futaba sighed. "I wish that it were true! But Maggie was the one that I saw in my motive video. I was utterly distraught upon seeing her in such a wretched condition, and the verbal attacks inflicted upon me later certainly did not help me keep my composure. And I confess, every now and then, I feel tempted to get out of here and find out what has happened to her. Even though I know my father's forces will eventually come save us, well... temptation is far more immediate, as we know."

Sorao nodded along, looking a bit calmer. "Well… If that's the case, then you have to fight the temptation somehow. You're our leader. It won't do if you betray us all, right?"

Futaba nodded slightly. "The motive video has already been destroyed, so I have only my memories of her now. I suppose that I can make do with simple memories. But… I fear that in the future, I shall think memories aren't enough. What I want is companionship in this trying time, and…" She looked back at Sorao. "Even though you know how I feel about all this, I must make this one request to you, however selfish it may be.

"Please… stay by my side!" Futaba besought. "I… I don't think that I can make it through this dreadful killing game without you. You not only give me good advice but also help me resist the temptation of killing! Even though I won't ever become your betrothed… I still think you to be a darling friend of mine! So then… I beg of you, stand by me!"

By the time Futaba was done, much of the grace that she usually had on her face was gone, and her eyes were a bit watery, as if she had just begged for her life. Meanwhile, Sorao stared at her, and his eyes were full of shock, he having never expected that things should turn out this way. Eventually, however, his expression lightened up, and he smiled.

"Yeah… I promise you that I won't leave you," Sorao said purposefully, a tranquil and steady look on his face. "I'll do my best to act as good a friend as you want me to be."

"Oh, Sorao… Thank you!" she whimpered. "Until now, I had meant to tell you all this since your becoming the deputy, but I could not find the will to do so. I am glad to see that you are still here for me!"

Sorao chuckled as he widened his winsome smile. "What kind of man would I be if I were to forsake you like that?"

As Futaba fawned over him, Masashi thought that he had seen enough of this. He had already witnessed more than he had thought he would, and besides, he should be off to the dining hall now.

"My, what an interesting development, is it not?"

Masashi quickly turned around and saw the voice's source, which turned out to be Haruyuki, the ever so eerie art critic.

"H-How long have you been standing there?" Masashi asked, slightly startled at the man's sight. If it were anyone else, he would still be surprised, but there was something about him that was strangely intriguing.

"Long enough to get the gist of the conversation," Haruyuki answered. "Let's walk together to the dining hall. The dinner meal is near, after all, and it'll be good to chat along the way."

After he agreed, as they walked, Haruyuki resumed the conversation.

"Now, then," the art critic began, "what did you think of all that?"

"Well… Um…" Masashi had no idea where to begin. "I'm pretty surprised to learn that Futaba already likes someone other than Sorao. But I'm also surprised to see that Sorao still agrees to be her loyal deputy."

"And do you think that to be a good thing?"

"Hmm… I don't think it's a bad thing at all," Masashi answered. "Things haven't changed at all, which is good."

"Oh? Why is that good?" Haruyuki asked.

"For one, things are peaceful now, and Futaba and Sorao still are friends, aren't they?" Masashi asked. "Their relationship won't change any time soon. Futaba herself already has feelings for someone else outside this killing game, and Sorao is all right with that. And he's also there to stop her from killing anyone, just in case she feels tempted to do so."

"And are you sure that you can trust Sorao on that?" Haruyuki replied. "After all, did the whole incident of his forgetting about the rope teach you nothing?"

"Well… I admit, I was a bit wary of him after the trial," Masashi said, "but the more I talked with him, the more I felt that he had truly forgotten about it. I mean, his explanation certainly sounds plausible. I can see how Atsushi's death stressed him enough to make him forget that he had moved the rope into his room. And from what I can tell, he seems a bit forgetful in general, but he means well, even if he's a bit too, well, sycophantic."

Haruyuki let out his usual eerie chuckle. "How interesting to hear that from you."

"So what do you think about it?" Masashi asked. Even if he was creepy, he should at least have something interesting to say.

"Personally, I think that things between the two will soon change."

"Huh? Why do you say that?"

"Setting aside Sorao, I think it best that you not neglect to think about the others here," Haruyuki answered. "What they do may affect how their relationship grows. We are all players that are connected to one another in some way, even if some connections are much stronger and more meaningful than others. With how many of us are here, it's far likelier that something will change their relationship sooner or later."

"Yeah… I can't deny that," Masashi replied. "By the way, you're not going to tell them that I've eavesdropped on them, are you?"

"Oh, fear not. I have no plans to interfere with the goings-on here," Haruyuki replied. "As I have said before, I wish to look at this whole situation as a beholder rather than a doer, so to speak. I have far more freedom if I keep a far distance away from anything that happens."

"Huh… Is that so…"

However many times Masashi had talked with him so far, he still could not tell what the deal with him was. There was no doubt that he seemed rather intelligent and observant, but his insistence that he have little to no role in matters concerning the group was rather unusual. It was one thing if he simply did not like to talk with others, but from what he could tell, he seemed social enough and did not mind talking with others.

_Much as I'd like to know more about him,_ Masashi thought, _I guess if he's not going to do anything, then there's no need to worry about him. He won't be one of those that will disrupt the peace here._

* * *

**More Free Time events! This time, it's with Tanjiro, Murphy, and Sayua. You may be surprised that I'm doing the second set of Free Time Events now, since for Chapter 1, I did the second set after the chapter in which the motive had been revealed, but this is part of how I've decided to structure Chapter 2.**

**Anyway, the main part of this FF chapter is that Futaba turns out to love both men and women, and she already has someone she has feelings for, which somewhat changes how her relationship with Sorao will develop. Of course, only time will tell how things will turn out in the end. Also, the motive will be revealed next time! Feel free to make any guesses on what you think it will be or what you think would be interesting to see. I always love to hear what your guys' thoughts and guesses are.**

**Here's my question for you this time: based on everything that you've seen so far, what's your opinion on Masashi, the main character? For example, does he strike you as a nice guy who's completely truthful and trustworthy?**


	18. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (4)

Three days later, one morning, Monokuma gave the following announcement:

"Good morning, everyone! Time to get up and have another merry day… is what I would say! But actually, I've got something special for you this time! Do you remember that room in the palace with all those pods and whatnot? Hurry up and get there pronto! See you later!"

Once the announcement ended, Masashi wasted no time getting ready for the morning. Instead of uncertainty about how he might spend the rest of the day, there was instead dread building up for what Monokuma had in store for them.

_Oh God, what does he want with us now?_ Masashi thought as he started dressing. He remembered all too well that the last time Monokuma had given the group something special, it had ended with Atsushi's and Haruka's deaths. And he knew that there were many temptations out there to use, so it was not as if Monokuma were to ever be in a loss for motives. Moreover, there was the interest sparked in him about the location given by Monokuma.

_I guess Monokuma really wants to keep his promise_, Masashi thought, recalling how out of place it looked in comparison to the Egyptian setting of the rest of the ship. _He promised that someday he'd tell us what they're for, and that day is today._

After he finished, Masashi left his bedroom at once and saw Kumi and Sister Hikari standing by the former's door. The storyteller looked as scared as he had been when the others had become certain that he was Atsushi's killer, whereas the nun was trying to look as calm and reassuring as she could.

"S-Sir Masashi?" Kumi asked, holding onto his teddy bear. "Y-You're not gonna do what Monokuma says, are you? I-I don't wanna do it! N-Nothing good will come out of it!"

"You have no choice, I'm afraid." It was Mari, who had come out of her own room. The phenologist looked not at all shaken by Monokuma's announcement, as if this were simply another event to behold. "You know what happens if you dare to defy him. You're free to do so, of course, and I won't stop you, but I'm just telling you what'll happen."

Though knowing that she was right, Kumi nonetheless looked down at Sir Teddybane, his ever so silent but faithful friend, and muttered a wish that there were no monsters awaiting them.

"By the way," Masashi said to Sister Hikari, noticing that Kumi's expression still showed some tiredness, "how has Kumi been?"

Sister Hikari sighed. "Well, it's all erratic. Two nights ago, he had a nightmare in which he was chased by some kind of ball Monokuma creature. But when he woke up from fright, he didn't imagine seeing any creatures lurking in his room. But last night, he saw evil creatures again while he tried to fall asleep, but he had nothing but pleasant dreams. I don't think there's any pattern to this, but hopefully, this is the end of his troubles."

"Yeah, I don't want to imagine him going through the ordeal again," Masashi said. "And I hope that whatever Monokuma comes up with doesn't do him any more damage."

"And what do you think are the chances of that?" Mari asked.

Masashi had no answer, but only bleak thoughts popped up in his mind when he tried to come up with one.

Deciding to tarry no longer, Masashi and the others headed over to the mysterious room in the Egyptian palace. When they reached the fourth deck, eight of the others must have already gone to the other side, as he could make out two boats by the platform on the other side of the river. There were only two boats remaining on this side, and so they wasted no time and began their sailing through the river.

_Oh God… Oh God…_ Masashi thought, feeling his heart beating faster while the boat moved quietly through the river. The room had always struck him as odd, and he had wanted to know what its purpose was, but when the time was about to come, there was a certain part of him that made him dread finding out. And yet, even with the dread, he would do nothing to stop this; not only was he required to go along with Monokuma's instructions, but he also could not stay put while knowing that the answer to his question was waiting right there, nothing present to hinder him. That was the dreadful cost of knowledge, but generally, it was better to know than not to know.

"Hmm… I wonder how long it'll take," Mari said, sitting next to him and looking almost bored as if this were a trip to the nearby doctor or pharmacist. "I hope it won't take too long. I don't want a lot of time to be wasted that I could have spent outside."

_Whoa… She's so calm about this..._ Masashi thought.

When the boat arrived at the other side, the four got off and walked into the room, which awaited them with a normal yet unsettling silence. Here as well were all the others but Sayua, Tanjiro, Haruyuki, and Hikari. It was then that Masashi saw that on each of the sixteen rectangular pods, all of which were set in a half-circle, was a pixelated drawing of a student. It was the same drawing that was on the students' doors, and so each pod appeared to be assigned an owner. Upon further inspection, he also saw that by each pod was a small stand to which was installed a keyboard.

"Sorao… Please remember what we talked about the other day," Futaba said, she and her deputy standing in the back. "If Monokuma should try to tempt me with his motive… then you must do whatever you can to help me resist it."

Sorao nodded, a strong-willed expression on his face. "And I promise you that I won't forget."

"Uh, Miss Nirigiri?" Arashi said, he and the pastry maker standing by the kitchen door. "Are you, um, all right?"

Faye, who had looked a bit tense, smiled, though there was a hint of nervousness therein. "Oh, uh, yes, I'm well, fit, and healthy! It's just that I can't believe Monokuma is up to something again. And,uh, tell you what: after this whole thing is over, I'll cook you a treat!"

"R-Really?!" Arashi beamed, seemingly unaware of Faye's worry. "Thanks, Miss Nirigiri!"

In truth, the only ones who did not look rather shaken by all this were Red Mask, Abraham, and Maiha, the last of whom seemed quite focused on keeping an eye on Futaba and Sorao, as if she were some kind of informant gathering information. Masashi reminded himself to keep an eye on Maiha, remembering how she had willfully roused the crowd against Futaba after Monokuma had explained the motive.

Abraham snarled. "If I could, I'd stay the hell away from this room. I don't give a fuck what the deal is with these pods. Whatever the freakish bear has in mind will bring us nothing but fucking trouble."

"Still… I do want to know what is up with them," Sister Hikari said. "I'd like to think that it's not so bad as you think."

"Maybe it's related to treasure!" Red Mask said unusually blithely. "I've always had the feeling that there's treasure hidden somewhere in this room!"

"No way that's it…" Murphy answered. "Your mind must have a lot of silly thoughts if you can say something like that."

"Yeah, I agree," Masashi said. "Well, not the part about silly thoughts, I mean, even if your character is pretty questionable overall."

Red Mask giggled, covering her mouth with her right hand. "What's so questionable about me?"

"Uh, do I really have to answer?" Masashi said.

"Anyway, even if it's something bad," Mari added, "there's nothing to worry about, if you ask me."

Once the last four arrived, a familiar cackle was heard, and in the group's midst appeared Monokuma.

"Good morning, everyone!" Monokuma said blithely, wearing his usual white captain's uniform. "Glad to see you all here! The weather's been getting a bit rough these days, but hey, maybe after all this, we can all go out and have a nice swimming session in the pool! That is, if you can still remember how your swimming skills!"

"So what's the reason you've called us this time, captain?" Sorao asked. "Does it have something to do with these pods?"

"As a matter, it does!" Monokuma answered. "They're indeed important for today's special event, and I've made sure that they're all good and ready for use!"

"Wait… Are we getting into those things?" Masashi asked.

"Yep! Don't worry, it won't hurt at all!" Monokuma said. "All I'm doing to you is… well, I'd prefer to tell you after the fact! It's much better that way!"

"I-I don't like the sound of that..." Faye said.

"Y-You're… You're going to brainwash us, aren't you?!" Kumi said, flustered. "Th-That's what these pods are for! The evil warlock's going to brainwash us with this technology that he must have gotten from the aliens!"

"Oh, just shut up about your fairies and aliens already!" Sayua said, raising a fist. "Or else I'll make you shut up the hard way!"

"Eep!" Kumi squealed as he covered his face with his teddy bear. "P-Protect me from that troll, Sir Teddybane!"

Sorao chuckled. "Looks like you're a troll now in his eyes."

"Wh-What…? _Troll?!_" The cheerleader scowled, looking as if she were about to grab him and throw him at the wall. "That's it! He's gonna get it one way or the other! I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one who's had it with his fantasy crap, so most of us here won't be against it if Tanjiro gives him a few punches to the head."

"All right by me," Abraham said.

"Wait, hold on!" Tanjiro partly raised his hands, eyeing his president worriedly. "Why am I the one to punch him? And why does there have to be any punching in the first place?"

"Oh, come on, you're the right kind of guy for the job," Sayua answered. "Your punches won't kill him any time soon, I tell you."

"Th-That's besides the point…" Tanjiro mumbled.

"Ahem!" Futaba said, unamused by the conversation. "You can continue your petty bickering later, preferably without violence. This is a serious occasion, and you have ruined it with your bickering."

"Oh, I don't know about that!" Monokuma said. "If you ask me, every now and then, it doesn't hurt to begin a dramatic moment with some comedy. It's just like how hospitals hire clowns to entertain patients before they undergo surgery."

"Um, I'm pretty sure hospitals don't do that," Sister Hikari said.

"_They don't?!_" Monokuma exclaimed, looking as if truly surprised before looking downwards dejectedly. "N-No way… Is everything that I've learned up until now all a lie?"

"There you go again…" Sorao said. "Anyway, what's the next step?"

Monokuma giggled, his dejectedness gone in a flash. "Well, it's simple! Just go into the pods, put on the headset inside, and relax. And don't worry, the pod will stay shut until the procedure's over, so no clown or whoever can come and stab you or anything."

Seeing that there was nothing else to do, all sixteen students here headed to their respective pods, and this time, the pods opened with ease. Inside each pod was a headset that looked much like the one that had been in the carriages for the Haunted Woods ride. The one outward difference was that the headset had cords linked to other parts of the pod, and when Masashi tried to pull the headset out, he was met with great resistance; it was clear that the headset was not meant to be taken outside.

After being hurried one last time by Monokuma, Masashi thought to waste no more time and lay down in the pod, which was great enough to feel comfortable in. Once he put on the headset, he heard the sound of something closing, all light from outside now gone.

"Relax, relax!" Monokuma said, still outside. "You guys are in an amusement park, after all! What harm will it do you to relax for a while?"

As soon as he said that, Masashi found himself feeling sleepier, sensing that the headset had just turned on.

_W-Wait… Hold on! What are you doing to me…?_ Masashi thought as his sight grew darker and darker. _I…_

A second later, Masashi saw what Monokuma had meant earlier. He was right; there was nothing left to do but relax.

* * *

"Wake up, everyone! You've had a long enough rest, but even relaxation can't last forever, you know!"

That was the first thing that Masashi had heard upon awakening. The pod's lid rose, letting all light come back to his sight, which made him wince for a second. Once he became used to the sight again, he raised his upper body, looking around him first. All the others were up as well, looking as confused and careful as he was.

"Get out of there already!" Monokuma said, beckoning them to come to him. "I don't really like to talk to people whose legs I can't see, you know."

"Wh-What's just happened?" Masashi asked as he and the others got out. "I could've sworn that we'd just gotten into those pods."

"Well, you did!" Monokuma answered blithely. "The procedure that we've done on you took only until the evening came, but I'm glad to say that it has been successful!"

"_E-Evening?!_" Futaba exclaimed. "It was about seven o'clock when we started this!"

Mari looked none too happy. "Are you saying that we've wasted nearly the whole day being here, then?"

"Hey, ladies, I'm only telling you the facts here. Though great and mighty, I can't rush science," Monokuma answered before his expression turned sad. "Yes, I know. It's surprising to learn that even I, the mighty Monokuma, have to wait every now and then."

"Simply explain to us what you have just done," Maiha said.

Monokuma chortled. "Are you sure you're ready for it?"

"Uh, duh! Have you forgotten why we're even here in the first place?!" Sayua said, shaking a fist at him as she frowned.

"Puhuhuhu… Well, I certainly have not forgotten anything at all," Monokuma replied before he looked at them seriously, raising a paw. "But… I can't say the same for you guys."

"Wh-What…?" Kumi said, eyeing the captain with a mix of confusion and dread. "I don't get it… Wh-What are you talking about?"

"N-No way… You're not suggesting…" Sorao said.

"To cut to the chase… from the procedure that you guys have just gone through…" Monokuma said before opening up his arms. "All the memories of someone dear to you have been taken away!"

The whole group gasped, every member's expression full of shock and nothing else.

"T-Taken away? No way… There's no way that's true!" Masashi said, and yet, notwithstanding his words of denial, every inch of his body pushed him to move, as if he were facing some danger that he ought to flee from. "Our memories can't have been taken away! It's impossible!"

"Impossible?" Monokuma giggled as he covered his mouth. "Are you _sure_ about that?"

It was then that a short but telling shriek came from someone from the group, and all the others then glanced at the woman that had let it out.

"N-No… No… No, no, no, no, _no!_" It was Faye, who looked unusually horrified, her hands shaking. "H-How could you do such a thing?! I… I can't remember her at all!"

"'Her'?" Abraham said.

"M-Miss Nirigiri?" Arashi said. "Wh-Who are you talking about?"

"My mother! I can't remember a single thing about her!" Faye exclaimed. "I-I can still remember my father, but as for my darling mother… The memories are all gone! Disappeared! Vanished! I can't remember her appearance! I can't even remember talking about her!"

The group gasped once more, but this time, instead of shock from disbelief, shock from the reality of the situation set in for each student here.

"Puhuhuhu!" Monokuma said as he faced the rest of the group. "Technology sure is amazing!"

"Wh-What are you playing at, you stupid little bear?" Abraham murmured as he grew a little skittish, panic setting into his face. "Memories… taken away? What bullshit is all this...?"

Murphy scowled. "I-I can't believe it, but it's no joke... I can't remember anything about my own mother as well."

"Enough of this farce!" Futaba said, her face losing a great amount of grace and composure. "I refuse to accept this answer. There is no such technology as can extract certain memories from people. We... We must have been drugged with some nefarious chemical, I am sure! That explains why we are all confused with respect to our memories right now."

Monokuma giggled. "All that means is that you're far behind the news. lady! Memory theft is the new hot thing, don't you know?!"

"Th-That's ludicrous..." Tanjiro said, eyeing his anxiously. "The more I see you, the more absurd this whole thing feels like… I mean, a talking autonomous bear is one thing, but sophisticated memory theft is definitely another!"

"U-Um… When are we getting back our memories?" Kumi said, tightening his grip on his teddy bear, his body quivering.

"Hate to break it to you, but those memories of yours are gone from your mind forever!" Monokuma answered. "None of you will get your memories back… until… you know!"

"Until someone here is killed," Sorao answered, looking composed compared to the others. "Only then will you return the lost memories to everyone remaining in the killing game."

"But that would mean that our memories are stored somewhere," Haruyuki said, who also looked unfazed for the most part. "Otherwise, how would he return them?"

"Why, that's right! In fact, they're stored right in this very room—the Memory Bank!" Monokuma then raised his paw, pointing at the pods from which the sixteen students had come out. "Each pod is linked to a storage space that stores the stolen memories of its respective student. They'll be safe in there, nice and cozy."

"Wait a minute… If that's the case," Sorao said, "what's stopping us from just going into our pods and accessing our memories, then?"

Monokuma chuckled once again. "If you want to keep something really dear to you, it makes sense to keep a lock on it. That's why there's a panel next to each pod, and the password happens to be the name of your forgotten one. If you type that in, then you get to access your pod and take a look at your memories, even though you can't take them with you."

"Wh-What?!" Arashi said, eyeing him intensely. "I-Is that true?!"

"Yep, I'm not kidding around!"Monokuma answered. "But hey, it doesn't matter, if you ask me. After all, you've lost all memories of your darlings, so it means you've forgotten their names as well, doesn't it? You might as well start thinking about killing someone, if you want to get them back!"

"Ugh... So it's nothing more than a mean-spirited taunt," Tanjiro said. "It's like putting the key to a treasure chest in the chest itself."

"And more importantly, are you telling us the whole truth?" Maiha asked.

"Hmm? What do you mean by that?" Monokuma asked inquisitively.

Maiha then pointed an accusatory finger at the bear. "What I mean is: you have unbridled access to our memories. Are you going to do anything to our memories while they're gone?"

"Modify them, you mean?" Monokuma replied. "Hey, don't worry! All the machines here do is take parts of your memories. Think of it as like taking away pieces of a pie, without actually being able to change the pieces!"

"Well… When you say that, I guess I feel a bit better," Sorao said. "You haven't lied to us so far, and even if you tried to trick us this time, we'd notice a discrepancy in our memories soon enough. And if that happened… well, this whole killing game's integrity would be put into question."

Monokuma chortled. "Exactly! Trust me when I say I won't do anything to them other than keep them safe and sound. And if you still don't trust me, then you really need to learn how to get over your anti-bear prejudice."

"And is that all you have to say to us now?" Mari asked.

"Actually… I have three more things left to tell you. But don't worry, they're nothing worrisome," Monokuma answered. "First, while you guys were asleep, I took the time to make all your rooms soundproof! Now you can as many loud parties in there as you want!

"Second, I've been cleaning the ship, and I've noticed a few rats in the ventilation," Monokuma continued. "Those damn little creatures got away from me as I tried my best to get rid of them. It'll take me some time to find them all and get rid of them, so from now on, you can't go into the vents."

"The vents?" Masashi then noticed that in this very room was a vent a few feet above one of the other pods.

"Not as if it mattered. We weren't crawling through the vents before, were we?" Sorao said. "What's the last one?"

Monokuma let out a hearty but irksome laugh. "This one's nothing bad. In fact, think of it as a gift! Somewhere on this ship, I've left behind a certain… thing."

"A… thing?" Sister Hikari asked as she and the others looked at him bemusedly.

"Yes, you may find it to be of great interest if you happen to find it," Monokuma answered. "And don't worry, you'll tell that it's from me if you see it."

"And where is this thing?" Sorao asked.

"Hey, now, that's for you to find out!" Monokuma answered. "But if you want a hint… it's not in the restrooms or the exhibit rooms, I assure you!

"Now, then, that's all from me! Hope you had a nice time on this _unforgettable _occasion! See you later!"

Monokuma laughed as he disappeared, leaving the sixteen students utterly stupefied. They all looked at one another uneasily for a short while, still trying to understand what had just happened to them.

"Well… I think we shouldn't stay silent about this," Sorao said, breaking the silence. "There's no denying that Monokuma's given us a new motive."

"Indeed," Haruyuki said. "I am rather curious as to how exactly we have been affected. It appears that Faye and Murphy have lost their memories of their mothers."

"But that's odd," Futaba said, looking a bit gloomy. "I remember my mother and my father without a problem."

"Well, according to the bear," Haruyuki said, "we each had been bereft of memories of someone dear to us. As some of us still remember their parents, it means that Monokuma had taken away the memories of someone else instead. For instance, perhaps I have an uncle or an aunt that I no longer remember."

Masashi tried to remember all that he could of his family. His mother and his father were alive and perfectly well the last time that he had seen them, even though the latter was overworked a bit at his company. And as far as he knew, he had no siblings at all. And yet, for some reason, much of what he remembered of his daily life was gone. Was it a sibling that he had forgotten? Or was it another relative or even one of his friends?

Futaba grimaced, her hands clutching the hems of her dress. "I don't know why, but… I feel that something is... missing."

Masashi felt likewise; whomever he had forgotten, the feeling that there was something missing now lingered in the air, and however much he could pretend otherwise, there was no denying what Monokuma had done.

"Then it appears that our memory theft is not perfectly seamless," Haruyuki said. "In fiction, usually, memory theft is meant to deceive victims into thinking that all is well, and so they sense nothing odd. But here, the imperfection and the distress caused thereby are intentional."

"Th-There has to be some way to get our memories back, right?" Faye asked, looking more distraught than Masashi would expect of her. Losing all her memories of her darling mother had understandably shocked her greatly.

"If you want to become the next killer, then go ahead," Abraham said, frowning. "Face it, there's no fucking way to get our memories back unless someone dies."

"Now, don't say that!" Sister Hikari said. "Perhaps once our rescuers come, they'll find a way to make our memories come back to us. Until then, we'll have to live with the fact that part of our memories have been stolen."

"Yeah!" Red Mask said, looking unusually blithe, given the situation. "A few stolen memories won't stop this phantom thief! In fact, I'm more impressed that Monokuma even came up with the idea of stealing memories!"

"I-Impressive? I-I don't really care about all this, but that's a weird way to put it..." Hikari said. Though appearing rather gloomy, she seemed hardly any different from how she usually looked. Masashi wondered whether the motive had barely affected her.

"And with all due respect, Sister Hikari, you don't expect us to just simply pretend that everything's normal now, do you?" Murphy said, eyeing her and the others with a hint of carefulness. "I was a fool to think that this killing game was only a joke, so I'd rather not make that mistake again."

The others looked uncertainly at one another as well. Though he wanted to believe that another murder would not happen again, it was beyond dumb at this point to deny the very possibility that someone here had already begun to think about killing. And moreover, being bereft of one's own memories was far greater a problem than the previous motive, in that it was much more unusual and less grounded in the world that they had known up until now. And in an unfamiliar situation, who knew how they would react?

"Well, if it's any consolation, we've already moved all the dangerous things from the storeroom to the second exhibit room. Only Abraham has the key to that," Sorao said. "The chances of someone pulling off a murder should be much lower now."

"Still, there's a chance that someone here will try to kill," Maiha countered. "The items locked behind the exhibit room are certainly not the only tools at our disposal, yes?"

Haruyuki shook his head. "Unless you plan to bereave us of our free will somehow, there will always be the chance that one of us will act."

"Yeah… we've done all that we can if you ask me," Sorao said. "The only thing we can do is hope that our rescuers come soon."

Though many of the group seemed none too reassured, none of them seemed too unassured that they would protest against this, unlike last time. Not even Maiha looked keen to push the others into gainsaying the leadership, her expression full of contemplation and composure instead. She could still be plotting something, of course, but for now, it seemed that the motive had affected her enough to be quiet.

"Y-Yes… that's right," Futaba said at last, regaining a bit of her usual grace. "In the meantime, I am a bit more concerned about something else. It's the matter of the object that Monokuma had mentioned last."

"Yeah, what's the deal with that?" Masashi asked, wondering what Monokuma was up to with it.

"Well, the best way to answer that is to actually find it," Murphy answered. "He said it was somewhere on this ship, right? It shouldn't take too long to find it, then."

"Then shall we have the group split up and look for it?" Sorao asked the lady.

"No, the ship is not so great that it would need many of us to search for it," Futaba answered. "A few of us should be enough."

Afterwards, it was decided that Faye and Murphy would search the first and second decks; Futaba and Abraham the third deck; and Mari and Tanjiro the fourth deck. Futaba had originally asked Sorao to search with her, but he had then claimed that he felt much more tired than usual, so she had chosen Abraham as her new partner.

"And as for the rest of you," Futaba finished, "you are to go back to the first ship, and you are free to do whatever you want as long as you do not interfere with our search. Once the search is done, we shall start our dinner meal."

Once everyone agreed to her bidding, the group left the Memory Bank, sailed to the other side of the river, and split off into two. The ones not investigating made their way to the woodland kingdom. No one said a word along the way, though the silence was telling enough of what was on all the students' minds.

_What exactly have I lost?_ Masashi thought, unable to rid himself of the feeling that someone important to him was missing. Even if he could not name what it was, that this feeling even existed already troubled him enough. If only he could find a way to get rid of it, he would spend the rest of his time here much more at ease.

When they reached the outside, they saw that it had already turned dark, the stars slightly hidden by the looming clouds. The waves, however, seemed a bit rough, beating against the ship as hard as a beggar child might against a rich man's door. Once the group was inside the first ship, many of the members split off, thinking to do something else other than stick around. The only one remaining in the dining room was Arashi.

"Hey, are you all right?" Masashi asked, seeing that he was rather quiet now. Though he had been like this lately, in truth, he had expected that Arashi might say something in anger against Monokuma, given his behavior the last time a motive had been given.

"Oh, uh… yeah!" Arashi answered before sighing. "Well… I feel a bit weird. I can't remember exactly who it is I've forgotten, but… I know that that person was really important to me."

"Any guesses as to who it may be?" Masashi asked.

Arashi thought for a few seconds. "Um… Actually, I do. I live with my grandma, and for some reason, I can't remember a lot of what's happened in my life. So maybe… it was my grandpa that I forgot?"

"Really?" Masashi said.

"I'm not fully sure, but it's the likeliest answer, right?" Arashi said, a dreary expression on his face. "But… I also remember walking from a graveyard with my grandma, so I think he's…"

It was then that his eyes began to water, his cheeks reddening.

"Grandpa…? Grandpa! Wh-What's happened to you?!" Arashi said. "S-Something must've happened to you, but what is it?! _What is it?!_ I… _I need to remember what's happened!_"

Suddenly, Arashi grabbed a nearby chair, and with surprising ease, he threw it at the nearby wall, which stupefied Masashi for a very short while before he recovered.

"_Monokuma!_" Arashi yelled. "_Give me back my memories! Give me back_—"

"Arashi! Stop it!" Masashi said, seeing that thinking about it would do him no good. "Think about what you've been trying to do! If you get angry over this, you'll make a terrible mistake!"

"Mistake…?"

"Yeah! What have you been trying to do these last few days?"

Arashi gasped. "Oh! Th-That's right… I mustn't let my anger get the best of me again! Yeah… I mustn't!"

Upon saying that, the pyrotechnician grew a little calmer, picking up the chair that he had tossed and putting it back in its place. "I… I just don't know what to do, though… The temptation is there, and it's really, really hard not to go for it…"

"Well, one way to ward that off," Masashi said, "is to think about something else. Maybe you should spend your time on a hobby while we're trapped here."

He had originally thought to suggest that he think about the negative effects of falling for Monokuma's motive, but he had then realized that it would only make Arashi think about the motive, even from a different perspective.

"A hobby…? Um… I don't know what I can do here as a hobby, but I'll think about it!" he declared.

* * *

About an hour later, the investigators had finished and told everyone to meet up at the dining room, according to what Mari had said when she had found him in the lounge. When Masashi arrived at the dining room, however, he sensed no celebratory mood coming from anyone, which made the results that they had been unsuccessful less surprising.

"I do not understand," Futaba said, irked. "Monokuma said that he had put the object somewhere on the ship, and yet, it is nowhere to be found."

"Maybe it's actually in one of the exhibit rooms, despite what he said," Sorao suggested, having taken a nap in his room during the search.

Futaba sighed as she shook her head. "I too thought to have Faye and Abraham inspect the rooms as well, just in case he had misremembered. But there was nothing to find there other than what we had already put in there."

"And obviously, the restrooms had nothing to find," Murphy answered. "So it seems like Monokuma was right about that."

The others murmured to one another about what this meant. Given that Monokuma clearly wanted them to find it, it was surprising that it had been so elusive to find now.

"Well, maybe if we search again tomorrow," Sorao said, "we'll find it. I get the feeling that we're all tired and shocked by this whole ordeal, so a good night's rest ought to do the trick."

"Hmm… I suppose that is the right course of action," Futaba said.

"And another thing," Sorao added. "If the object that Monokuma put is made of metal… it'll be helpful to use the metal detector, don't you think?"

"Wait, what metal detector?" Masashi said.

Sorao crossed his arms. "Oh, yeah, I guess you don't know… Well, during Faye's and Abraham's search of the storeroom a few days ago, they found a small metal detector lying there. They put it in the second exhibit room, but I think it'll be wise to take it out for a spin."

"Yes, go ahead and do that…" Futaba said, looking a bit dazed. "Now, I believe that it's time for the dinner meal. Faye, go to the kitchen and begin your work."

"Oh, uh… right, right!" Faye said, who also gave off a rather weird feeling. Notwithstanding her determined expression, it seemed that she too had not fully recovered from what had just happened to her, and therefore, the smile that she showed looked a bit forced.

The dinner meal came and passed much more quietly than usual, though the quality of the food seemed to have worsened a bit.

* * *

_Oh… I still can't remember..._

There had been the hope that their memories would come back the next morning, and having felt exhausted, Masashi had headed to bed right after he had finished his shower last night. But when Masashi had woken up the next day, he still could not recall what he had been bereft of. He could recall his parents and many of his other relatives, but there was still someone missing, and the worst part was that there was no way to find out what it was. The only way to find out was the memories locked in his pod, but as Tanjiro had said, it was nothing more than Monokuma's mean-spirited taunt, as if he had felt not enough pleasure from their suffering.

The breakfast meal passed uneventfully, with the usual conversations here and there, though there was a noticeable drop in liveliness among the students; it was clear that the memory theft had done a number on them, even if they denied it. It was most noticeable in Faye, who was usually open for conversation, but was now rather quiet, saying nothing to her tablemates, her eyes looking a bit weary. Among the few who seemed unaffected, however, was Sayua.

"Tanjiro and I are gonna keep looking in the hidden library," the president of Team Tomi announced. "I betcha that there's an answer to this whole shitty problem somewhere in there."

"It would be swell if you found the solution to our problem," Haruyuki said, also another who seemed to be his usual self. "But as I said last time, I highly doubt that the mastermind would be so careless as to leave behind the cure in the library. You are welcome to try, however."

"Indeed," Maiha said. "In fact, let me accompany you. I have something to look for in the library as well."

"Oh? What is it?" Tanjiro asked.

"Nothing that concerns you, commoner," she answered bluntly, and that was the end of that.

The only other remarkable thing that happened during the meal was an incident wherein Red Mask accidentally got ketchup spilled on her purple shirt, which made her head back to her room early. Once the meal was done, all the students left to sundry parts of the amusement park, whiling their time away as they waited for their rescuers. Masashi walked around, wanting to see whether there was anyone he could hang out with, though he sensed that very few people here were open for conversation. Nonetheless, he wandered about, having nothing in particular to do.

Today, the weather was noticeably rougher; there were more dark clouds, and the winds were stronger than usual, the chairs and parasols by the pool barely sticking to the deck. Nevertheless, when he saw Mari standing by the bow, she insisted that she stay there.

"I'm all right, really," she said. "The weather doesn't bother me that much."

"Are you sure about that?" Masashi asked.

She nodded slightly as she stared back at the waves. "I appreciate your concern, but really, you don't worry about me, really. Whatever happens happens."

Later, Masashi thought that he could find someone to ride the merry-go-round with, seeing that if he was staying at the amusement park against his will, he might as well enjoy what was offered him. He began his way to the merry-go-round room, only to hear chatter coming from the lounge. He peeked through the door, and sure enough, it was Sorao and Futaba, the latter of whom carried a look of great anxiety.

"Ah, Sorao…" Futaba began, her voice quivering. "There's… something that I need to tell you."

"Huh? What is it, Lady Inoshishi?" Sorao asked, looking at her inquisitively.

"Well… to begin with, I'm not sure whether I've told you this before, but I'm actually betrothed to another man already," Futaba said, looking at him seriously. "That man happens to be the son of a businessman with whom my father works."

Masashi gasped, recalling the conversation that Futaba had had with Sorao a few days ago. Futaba had revealed to Sorao that she had feelings for him, but she must not fall for him, since she already had feelings for a woman, a Spanish dancer who was also the hostage that Monokuma had taken as part of the first motive. Though greatly shocked, Sorao had nonetheless agreed to stay by her side, even if his chances with her were now gone. Since Futaba could no longer remember that conversation, it meant that the darling whom she had forgotten was her dancer friend.

"Um… I think you told me this a few days ago," Sorao said. "I don't remember all the details of the conversation, though. It's been a while, as you know."

"Yes… That I understand," Futaba said. "Anyway… my father wants me to wed the man, as part of the consolidation of his business might. But in truth, I am hardly any interested in the man at all, however kind he may be. The one that I am more interested in is… is…"

Her lips trembled as she struggled to get her answer out.

"It's you, Sorao."

"Wh-What? Me?" Sorao said, eyes widened.

"Indeed. I've grown more and more interested in you ever since you began to help me here. I don't why I haven't told you this beforehand, but I suppose it's about time that I told you."

She took in a deep breath of air as she looked him right in the eye, her cheeks reddening, her body quivering. "Sorao Mineta… I love you."

It was then that Masashi, already shocked by what he had heard so far, completely froze and understood what was going on: Futaba, though having forgotten her dancer friend, still had feelings of love lingering within her. She needed someone to love, but she had been bereft of all memories of the object of her love, so with that in mind, she went for the next logical option.

_Still… I can't believe it! She's confessed!_ Masashi thought.

"Wh-What…? You love me?" Sorao said, shock rushing through his face.

"Yes. I wish to start a relationship with you."

"But… your father! What about him and your betrothal?"

"Oh, I can't very well agree to what he has in mind for me!" Futaba said, frowning as disapproval entered her eyes. "Once we are rescued, I'll tell him that he must cancel the betrothal. However much he may protest, I am set on starting a relationship with you."

"S-Still… Aren't you rushing this a little, Lady Inoshishi?" Sorao said nervously. "Maybe you should talk with your betrothed first before we make any hasty decisions!"

"What's there to talk about?" she asked. "I don't hate the man, but he hardly interests me. I can't imagine that I should have a very fulfilling life if I were to wed him. But you, on the other hand, are different! I feel that you actually understand me and will stand by me, come what may."

"I… I see…" Sorao said, whose cheeks too had reddened, as he scratched the back of his head. "Well… if truth be told, I've been interested in you. It's just that… I'm a commoner, and I didn't think that you would want to start a relationship with me."

"Sorao, I can assure you, your social rank will be of no problem to me," Futaba said.

"Really? Then... now that you say that you want to be with me, however poor I may be… well…" Sorao stopped for a few seconds before he could utter his answer. "I guess we can start seeing each other."

The lady then looked at her with stern but pleading eyes. "Is that a promise?"

Sorao nodded. "It's a promise."

"Oh, Sorao... thank you!" Futaba then held Sorao by the hand, smiling as if she were a girl given her favorite sweets. "I feel that with you, my future has grown brighter!"

"Haha… I guess I have that kind of effect on you," Sorao said, chuckling.

As the two celebrated the beginning of the relationship, however, Masashi stared at the sight, shocked by what had seen. It was not that Sorao and Futaba were now an item; he had once thought that they would make a good match. No, it was that the occasion seemed like a repeat of their conversation a few days ago, in which Futaba had explicitly told him that his advances would not work, as she had already fallen for another. But the difference was how it had ended; it was as if time had reversed itself so that the occasion might lead to its proper outcome this time.

But that was not it at all. Time had not reversed itself; it was simply the erasure of the dancer from Futaba's memories. Thanks to that, Sorao had no longer had no obstacle in starting a relationship with her. It seemed rather convenient that things had turned out this way, but that was not the main thing that concerned Masashi.

_Sorao… He can't have forgotten, can he?_

Last time, Sorao had sworn to stand by her side, even though he was never to become her betrothed, and such a promise was so weighty that Masashi could not believe that Sorao had forgotten the details of the conversation, however forgetful he might be. At the very least, he must have remembered that Futaba already had a lover, and he must have realized that it was the lover whom Monokuma had cruelly made Futaba forget.

_In other words… Sorao purposely chose not to tell her!_ Masashi realized with horror. _He… He lied to her! But why...?_

Though not wanting to interfere with the couple's happiness, he sensed that if he did not address it later, something bad might happen. He needed to talk with them about Sorao's deception.

_No… Not both of them_. Masashi realized that the best way to understand what was going on was from the horse's mouth. In short, he ought to talk with Sorao only instead of openly confronting him while Futaba was around. He wanted to make sure that things should resolve without any tragedy, and so a private talk with Sorao later was the best option. Seeing that he was busy now, Masashi thought that he could talk to him tomorrow.

In the meantime, Masashi quickly left the scene, going to the dining room. Unlike last time, there was no one to accompany him. He wondered how Haruyuki would react to all this, but for now, he planned to deal with this by himself.

* * *

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, most of the others keeping to themselves. The dinner meal had no incidents, and once again, Faye's cooking was noticeably a bit worse than usual. Still, Masashi was glad that they had someone to cook for them, so he made no complaints and kept on eating his pastries. Moreover, Abraham looked a bit more tired than he would expect, but he thought that it was simply due to being forced to search for Monokuma's mysterious object; there was still no progress on that front, unfortunately, but Futaba insisted that they not give up on finding it.

After the dinner meal, Masashi spent some time with the others before he headed back to his room. By the time he finished his shower, nighttime had already begun.

_I wonder when this whole nightmare will end…_ Masashi thought as he looked out the window, thinking about what had happened up to this point. He had found himself in this very room and ventured out before seeing that he along with seventeen others were trapped on this ship that was part of a fantastic amusement park. Then after Monokuma had announced their situations, the students had remained idle. But it had all changed when Monokuma had given them motive videos of their loved ones—"

_Wait a minute…_ Masashi snapped from his daze, realizing something odd. _Who… was my loved one in my video?_

However much he tried to remember, he could not remember whom he had seen upon watching his video for the first time. He also remembered that he had offered to clean up the mess that Futaba, Atsushi, and Mari had made from destroying all the videos, and there had been one unbroken video. That video had been—

_Mine!_ Masashi quickly rushed through his drawers, shocked that he had completely forgotten about it. So much had happened since then that it had naturally slipped his mind.

Not long after, he found a pink tablet whose screen was slightly shattered, but it must still be functional. Why else had he stowed it here? He turned it on, all too keen to remember its contents.

"It's the moment we've all been waiting for! The motive video!" Monokuma said in the video, the screen showing "Masashi Kousaki's Motive Video". He vaguely remembered seeing this screen; it was the same screen that he had seen on his tablet while cleaning up, after all. "Who's the person most important in your life? Let's find out!"

As soon as the screen changed, Masashi realized what he was now seeing.

_No… No… This person… I-It can't be…!_

On the screen was a girl with short black hair who had an ever so blithesome smile. She wore a white headdress, a white apron over a black dress, and white lacing, looking like a typical maid.

"Masashi Kousaki, the Ultimate Lucky Student!" Monokuma said. "Rather bland and uninteresting upon first glance, this high school boy can stand out only with his title. But the same can't be said for Keiko Kousaki, his little sister and the Ultimate Maid! We've managed to get a video with her, so let's hear her sweet exquisite voice now!"

_No! No! This can't be! This girl… is my sister?! But… I don't have a sister!_

"Oh, hey, Masashi!" the girl said, her voice chirpy. "I hope that things are going well back at home. It's been pretty tiring so far at the place I'm working at, but it's no problem for me! I'll be sure to send you some of my earnings soon!"

_No! No, no, no! This girl can't be my sister! But… But..._

Masashi clutched his head, his eyes focused on the girl, who Monokuma said was his younger sister, but all the memories that he had in him said otherwise.

_This can't be right… This can't be right! This has to be a lie!_

This was all wrong. This girl could not be his little sister, and yet the more he listened to his own explanation, the less he could accept it, as if knowing that the message that his memories told him was to be spoken against. He felt as if there were an irritating buzzing sound that urged him to deny what he now saw right before him, and having understood that he was seeing something that he was not meant to see now, he knew that to rid himself of the sound, he simply needed to stop watching and destroy the video, as the leadership had meant to do.

_No… No, no, no, noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!_

And yet, Masashi kept his eyes on the video. Once he had seen the beginning, he could not stop until he saw everything.

"Oh, no!" Monokuma said after the screen changed to show Keiko kept captive in dreary conditions, her lovely appearance utterly sullied. "It seems that Keiko's days of employment have come to an end! And it's all due to an unfortunate incident! What is that incident, you may ask? Well, you'll find out once you leave this place! Puhuhuhuhu!"

The video then ended. Masashi stood there dumbstruck by the discovery of what he had lost. A numbness rushed through his legs and arms, and so he fell on his knees, the image of the girl echoing through his mind. For a long while, he stayed like that as if waiting for the image to rid him of all the false images in his mind. And yet, he knew that he would have to wait forever; after all, all he had done was discover who his lost darling was. He had not recovered his stolen memories at all, and that was the end of that.

_No… No, that's not true. That's not true at all..._

The stolen memories were stowed in his assigned pod in the Memory Bank, the very last room in the palace of sands. The only way to access his pod was by typing in his lost darling's name, and formerly, he had thought it to be nothing but Monokuma's taunt.

But now things were different. Indeed, this time, he knew what his lost darling's name was.

"Keiko..."

He repeated the name, as if worried that he would forget it. But of course, even if he were to forget, he could always just look at the video again.

"Keiko... Keiko..."

He rejoiced every time that he said the name. It was something that he was not meant to know right now, and so every utterance was indeed an act of defiance.

"Keiko... Keiko... Keiko..."

Monokuma must be listening to this right now, and he was glad if this irked him greatly. He must have realized his mistake, and now, he could not stop it, having already set the terms of the current motive.

"_Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko, Keiko!_"

After a while, having said it enough times, he was sure that he would not forget her name. Then what came out of his mouth next was not her name but a hearty laugh.

"Ahaha... Ahahahahahahahahahaha!"

He rose from the floor, an ever so gladsome smile on his face, glee and joy in his eyes. He had realized what he had been missing after Monokuma had wrongfully stolen his memories of Keiko, and now, he had the chance to see what he had lost. Sure, he would not actually get back his memories until someone died, as part of Monokuma's motive; the pod only gave him an opportunity to watch his memories. But that was good enough; he now had a chance to see what he had lost in his peaceful life, and it was all thanks to the motive video, which Monokuma himself had given him. Yes, the irony was clear and ever so delightful.

And of all the videos that had stayed intact during the leadership's destroying of the videos, it was his and his alone. What extraordinary luck he must have! Now, he could use the video to overcome the deception that Monokuma had set on him.

_To think, I was forced to forget about you!_ Masashi thought as he put the motive video in his gray jacket. It was a bit shameful that he had forgotten one of his own kin, but there was nothing that he could have done to stop it. _D__on't worry, Keiko… I'll see you again soon._

It was nighttime, and so the others should all be asleep. No one would be there to stop him from going to the Memory Bank. Of course, no one had heard him laughing; these walls were soundproof. And there was no way that he would turn down the opportunity to remember the knowledge that he had lost. Generally, it was better to know than not to know.

Once ready, Masashi left his room, off to see his lost darling.

* * *

**Here's the motive at last! This time, it's memory theft (a variant of this was used in the first case of DR2), and I thought it'd be interesting to see how certain characters would react to hearing that certain memories of theirs were gone. In short, a few of the characters have changed quite a bit because of it, and Masashi rediscovers something important about himself. And yeah, the action in this chapter isn't over yet!**

**All right, now that you have the motive, which characters do you think will die this chapter?**


	19. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (5)

At long last, Masashi would soon discover what he had been made to forget of his lost darling. He now stood before his pod in the Memory Bank, his fingers itching to type in the password. He had not expected himself to be in this situation, but it was all thanks to luck that he would see what he had lost.

He could almost laugh at how swimmingly things had gone. It felt almost too good to be true, and yet, here he was.

Without further ado, he typed "Keiko Kousaki" in the keyboard. The pod's lid then rose, letting him go into the inside. There was still the same headset, so it seemed that Monokuma had changed nothing about the pod, which Masashi had expected.

Once inside, he wore the headset, after which the pod's lid then shut itself and bathed him in nothing but darkness. A few seconds later, the headset turned on, and he saw a light-blue screen that showed a menu:

Watch Memories

History

Instructions

Leave

Experimenting around a bit, he discovered that he could still use his hands while using the program, and by touching the right side of his headset, which had a few buttons acting as a control panel, he could move through the menu. He looked at the Instructions section first, and it listed what he could do while watching his memories. There was no pause button, but there was an option to "abruptly end" the watching of a memory by pressing any two buttons on the right side of the headset. Masashi had no idea why he might do that, but it might be handy to have such an option later.

Curious about the History option, he clicked it, and the screen then showed the following:

Day 1, 7:31 AM - Pod accessed

Day 1, 7:31 AM - Memory extraction started

Day 1, 6:33 PM - Memory extraction finished

Day 1, 6:33 PM - Pod exited

Day 2, 10:34 PM - Pod accessed

_Ah, so it's a history of everything done in the pod… How convenient,_ Masashi thought. It was most likely there to help keep track of everything that he had done with the pods, though frustratingly enough, the actual date was not shown; it instead started counting from the day when the pods began their service. Thankfully, there was a small indicator of the time at the bottom part of the screen. He must make sure that he should not stay here for too long, after all.

Now, then, it was time to see what he had come here for. He chose the "Watch Memories" button, after which he found a list whose contents were "Memory 1", "Memory 2", and so forth. He could not tell exactly how many memories there were, though if he were to guess, he would think the number to be at least fifty.

Having taken in the sight, Masashi clicked "Memory 1", after which everything turned white.

* * *

"Hey, Masashi, get up already, will you?"

The fourteen-year-old Masashi groaned as he opened his eyes and saw his twelve-year-old sister, her black eyes looking right at him, her arms akimbo. Once seeing that he would not rise any time soon, she sighed and drew open the nearby curtains of his small, cozy bedroom, which made him wince a bit at the sudden coming of light.

"Come on, get up!" Keiko said. "It's ten forty-five, you know. You usually wake up much earlier than that. Don't tell me you stayed up playing that new game of yours."

"Hey, it was recommended to me by lots of my classmates, and it was a really fun game—"

"Again with the excuses. You've got to think about your choices, you know!" Keiko replied. "Last time, you said you couldn't clean up after yourself because you'd been too busy studying for that test. But if you ask me, you shouldn't have crammed in the first place."

"I wasn't cramming! I was simply—"

"Yeah, yeah, have it your way. At least get up, will you? I can't clean the sheets while you're on the bed," Keiko said, looking half-amused. "I've already cooked your breakfast, but at this point, with how slow you are, it'll be your lunch instead."

Thinking not to waste her time anymore, Masashi got up and stretched his arms as he headed off to the bathroom. By the time he was done brushing his teeth, the bedsheets had already been taken to the washing machine downstairs, and Keiko was now cleaning his desk, humming a sweet tune. However much she might bicker with him about how lazy he sometimes was with maintaining his room, she would never threaten to deny him this service, as he could tell that Keiko truly enjoyed doing this kind of stuff.

Afterwards, Masashi headed downstairs to the kitchen and found his meal. Once he was done with it, he headed back to his room and saw that the room indeed looked smart, everything in its proper place, or at least what Keiko had deemed proper. The only thing missing was the bedsheets, but that would take some time to finish in the laundry.

"What's your plan for today?" Keiko asked.

"Well, I was thinking that we could play a game together," Masashi said. "How about the racing game I bought yesterday? You looked a bit interested in it."

"You just want to put off doing your homework, don't you?"

"I have plenty of time tomorrow, so I plan to do it then."

"If you ask me, that's a roundabout way of saying you're not doing it now."

"And if you ask me, that's a roundabout way of saying you'll lose if I challenge you."

Keiko sneered, her eyes glinting. "So you want to play it that way, do you? Well, don't say I didn't warn you when you complain about homework tomorrow."

He and Keiko then headed over to the living room and started up the console. For the next few minutes after that, they played several short rounds of the racing game, and though Masashi won a few more times than Keiko, he could see that she had as much fun with the game.

Keiko giggled as she put down the controller, having won this round. "Well, now, it's been fun playing this with you, but I have to take care of the bedsheets now. The laundry should have finished by now."

"Wow, you haven't forgotten about that?"

"You know me well enough to see I don't forget about the important things," Keiko said. "Unlike you."

"I can assure you that I don't forget about laundry at all," Masashi said.

Keiko let out a small chuckle. "Come on, you know that's not what I meant."

"Oh, I know," Masashi said as he stood up. "All right, you win. I'll help."

Keiko smiled. "You don't _need_ to, really, but thanks for helping me out."

Of course he would help out if he felt like it. This was his home, and he had to take some responsibility in helping maintain it. His father was busy with work, and his mother was out of town right now, so while they were gone, all responsibility was left to both siblings. Keiko took care of nearly everything to the point that Masashi felt a bit ashamed, but on the other hand, he was glad that thanks to her work, the two of them now had much more time to do whatever they wanted.

It was such a sweet, peaceful life, and he asked for nothing more.

* * *

It was far more tiresome to go through his memories than he had thought; he expected it to be rather simple to go through, but to see what he had lost was beyond shocking. Every time a memory reached its end, he was taken back to the screen showing the list of memories, so it was that short break that stopped him from being fully immersed in the world of his memories. And the memories were of variable length; one memory could last about half an hour, whereas another could be as short as three minutes.

Back at the main menu, Masashi wondered whether the History section had changed at all. When he went to it, he saw that it indeed was different:

Day 1, 7:31 AM - Pod accessed

Day 1, 7:31 AM - Memory extraction started

Day 1, 6:33 PM - Memory extraction finished

Day 1, 6:33 PM - Pod exited

Day 2, 10:34 PM - Pod accessed

Day 2, 10:35 PM - Memory 1 started

Day 2, 11:07 PM - Memory 1 finished

…

Day 3, 12:39 AM - Memory 9 started

Day 3, 12:55 AM - Memory 9 finished

Though interested in seeing more memories, he decided that he had had enough of this for one day; even he could not risk staying out here for too long, as he had a feeling that staying out too late risked something bad befalling him. Moreover, he felt rather tired; even though the mind was keen, the body said otherwise, and so he thought to resume his journey later.

He clicked the option to leave, after which the screen disappeared, and all became dark. A few seconds later, the pod's lid opened, letting all light come in again; this time, he did not wince, having seen it coming. Once he left the pod, it closed, keeping the memories safe and sound.

_Ah… How lovely it was to see you again, Keiko…_

Masashi widened his smile as he recalled what he had seen. His memory of his memories was far from perfect, but it had been a great pleasure to find out what was missing from his blissful, peaceful life. And every moment in which he was with his sister was wonderful as well, however dull and ordinary the occasion might be. It was funny that it was the memory theft that let him fully appreciate the richness and wealth in those ordinary moments that had happened long ago, but that was how things had ended up—

And it was then that he heard the door open.

Alarmed, Masashi turned toward the door, only to freeze upon seeing the unbidden visitor.

"Wh-Wh-What… What are you doing here?" Masashi asked.

"I ought to ask you the same question, commoner!" Maiha answered, eyeing him with surprise. "I was taking a nightly walk around the ship when I happened to see a boat on the other side of the river. My curiosity piqued, I headed here at once, and whom should I see but you! Truly, I should say that I am surprised, but..." Then she sneered. "If I remember correctly, you snuck off to the hidden library when the rest of us were still kept unaware about it. I should have expected you to wander around at night."

"Oh… Well, for your information, I was only talking a walk," Masashi said, keeping his guard up as he looked at the lady. Though she posed no physical threat to him, he feared what she might do next, given her cunning and craftiness.

"Were you, really?" Maiha chuckled, covering her mouth with her hand. "What a particularly odd spot to walk to."

"Yeah, well, I find this room oddly soothing," Masashi replied. "I don't mind Ancient Egypt, but it's not a place I'd stay in if I wanted to cool off."

Maiha chuckled again. "You really ought to cultivate your tastes more. Notwithstanding the lack of actual chariots, I find this ship to be a relaxing place to be in. The ancient Egyptians certainly had many interesting customs. Do you know that the ancient Egyptians highly valued their cats?"

"They did?"

"Indeed. And I myself know the worth of cats. I own two of them," Maiha answered.

"Well, if you say that, then who am I to argue?" Masashi said, hoping that a little flattery would distract her. "I'm just a thoughtless commoner, after all."

"Hmph. That is the most natural conclusion to draw," she said. "But… I'm surprised, truly."

Masashi looked askance at her. "Surprised? What for?"

"When we first met, you said that you were the Ultimate Lucky Student, so I thought little of you," Maiha answered, giving him a sidelong glance as she faced elsewhere. "But… you managed to figure out how that crafty clown pulled off Atsushi's murder. I was astounded to hear you accuse her."

"Well… at that point, all the evidence pointed toward her," Masashi answered.

"Still, you managed to see through all her deceptions," Maiha said as she lowered her eyes a bit. "And it is so, so odd! Among the commoners here, you are the most ordinary and unexceptional, and yet it was not any of the other commoners but you that solved the case. It is such a perplexing image…"

Maiha mumbled off as her expression grew more and more confused. For a second, Masashi thought that she might think twice about her opinion of him, but he was still aware that he ought to be wary of her. Indeed, that she thought him to be exceptional might not be so good a sign as he would like; all it meant was that she would focus on him more, and he would rather stay out of whatever schemes the lady might have.

Eventually, she looked back at him, a gentle but ever so arrogant smile on her face. "Anyway… I suppose that you and I are done with our walks now. Much as I would rather walk by myself, just this once, I will let you accompany me. We both are heading for the same destination, are we not?"

"Hmm… I guess so," Masashi answered, feeling a bit more relieved that Maiha had not questioned him any further on his activities here.

Afterwards, the two left the Memory Bank together, and they rode to the other side of the river on separate boats. Without uttering even one word, the two made their way back to the fourth deck of the woodland kingdom, where everything was still at peace. The two then bade each other good night before heading back into their rooms.

Once in his room, Masashi heaved a great sigh of relief, all euphoria from remembering Keiko now gone. And it was all due to that woman, Maiha Hanazawa, whom he had not expected at all to see. In hindsight, going to the Memory Bank had seemed like a rather foolhardy idea, but he did not regret it at all; he now remembered a bit more of Keiko. And thankfully, it was Maiha and not anyone else that he had had the misfortune to see; Maiha was by no means a paragon of goodness, but if someone like Sorao or Futaba had found him, things would have definitely gone differently.

Still, his encounter with Maiha now reminded him of the risks of going off somewhere in the night. And that was not to mention that he meant to kept his knowledge of Keiko a secret from the others; the others were not to know that he not only had kept his motive video but also had taken a look at his memories in the Memory Bank. No, those were for his eyes only.

"Hey, buddy, wanna talk for a moment?"

Masashi started upon hearing that voice, but sighed as the familiar sight of Monokuma appeared right before him.

"What do you want?" Masashi asked. Instinctively, he crossed his arms, protecting the motive video from the bear.

"Oh, come on, Masashi, you know what I'm here to talk about!" Monokuma answered, looking a bit angry. "You were so loud, you know! You kept saying that delicious food product's name so many times… Cake-O!"

"It's 'Keiko', and that's my sister you're talking about," Masashi answered sternly. If the bear was going to waste his time, the least that he could do was cut the jokes and get straight to the topic. "And it wasn't against the rules, was it?"

"No, but I didn't appreciate it at all! I have to watch you guys 24-7, and let me tell you, unless there's a killing or some lovemaking going on, it's no fun to have my serenity ruined at night!" Monokuma replied before calming down. "Anyway… if truth be told, buddy, I was pretty surprised to see you like that! When I gave you guys the current motive, I didn't think you'd find your old motive video."

"Yeah, well, I did. Is there something wrong with that?"

"Oh, of course not! There's no rule saying that you can't keep your motive video, right? And it'd be unfair if I changed how the Memory Bank works, all because of you," Monokuma said. "Still… I didn't expect you to see your memories like that. I figured you'd think about killing for a change."

Masashi frowned. "I'm already happy enough being able to see my memories."

"Puhuhuhu… Fair enough," Monokuma said. "But you know, with how calm you are, I'm surprised you haven't thought about _that_…"

Masashi raised his brow. "What are you talking about?"

"You know… seeing that lady in the middle of the night!" Monokuma answered. "You think you've fooled her with your excuse that you were only out for a walk. But come on, have you thought about her own tale?"

Masashi stiffened upon realizing what Monokuma was hinting at. "Wait… Are you saying that she _wasn't_ out on a walk?"

"Hey, now, I'm not saying she was _lying _about it! I'm only suggesting the possibility!" Monokuma said. "Are you _sure _that you're the only one sneaking off to the Memory Bank at night?"

The more he thought about it, the more he begrudgingly admitted that Monokuma had a point here. It was not certain, but it was awfully weird that Maiha had gone to the Memory Bank at that particular time.

_No… Could it be… she went there because she'd remembered what her darling's name was?_ Masashi thought. _Or could she have gone there for some other purpose? But what…?_

"But hey, that's only food for thought!" Monokuma said. "I think I'll let you chew on that by your lonesome now. See ya!"

Monokuma disappeared in an eyeblink, after which Masashi sighed, put away his motive video, and lay down on his bed. He had begun the night on such a good note, but to have it end on encounters with Maiha Hanazawa and Monokuma made him want to go to sleep and let the night end already.

* * *

The next morning, the breakfast meal went by uneventfully, though Masashi caught Maiha looking at him every now and then. Masashi wondered what she was up to, but he did not care enough to ask; even one encounter had been enough of her already. And besides, he had a weightier issue to deal with now.

After the meal ended, Masashi walked up to Sorao, who was about to leave with Futaba. "Hey, could I talk to you about something?"

Sorao raised his brow. "What is it, man? I've got something to do with Lady Inoshishi soon."

"It's something that may take a while," Masashi said. "And I'd rather talk about it with you in private."

"Well… if that's the case…" Sorao then looked back at the mistress. "Lady Inoshishi, please wait for me at the palace's lounge. It seems that I have a matter to settle with Masashi."

Futaba sighed, shaking her head. "I suppose that duty calls. I shall wait for you in the meantime."

Afterwards, Masashi and Sorao walked over to the lounge on the third deck, and Sorao shut the door.

"All right, buddy, what is it?" Sorao asked.

Though he had planned this meeting, it had just occurred to Masashi that he did not know exactly what to say. Sorao did not seem like the kind of man to use violence, but depending on how things go, he might find that things would turn ugly.

"Well, I have something to confess," Masashi said, thinking it best that he establish already what he wanted to talk about. "I know that you have become Futaba's lover."

Sorao widened his eyes. "Wait… you know about that?"

"That's right. I eavesdropped on your conversation yesterday as well as the one a few days ago," Masashi answered. "You know, the one in which she told you that she already had feelings for that Spanish dancer woman."

Sorao frowned a little, his gaze growing a bit stern. "Oh, that conversation…"

"I'm sorry that I eavesdropped on you, but that's not the main problem here," Masashi said.

"Problem? And what exactly is the problem, man?"

Masashi gulped. Even though his misdeed had not been exposed yet, he could tell that Sorao had caught on to what he was about to say. But he must keep on going; he must expose what Sorao's true intentions were. Since he had lied to her, it might mean that he was up to something, just like Haruka, and a preventable tragedy would later happen.

"You… You lied to her when you agreed to be in a relationship with her," Masashi said. "You didn't tell her that she already had a lover, when you knew full well that she did."

"I lied? Really?" Sorao sighed, arms set on his hips. "And why did I lie, exactly?"

_Huh, that's a pretty telling response,_ Masashi thought. Ordinarily, anyone else would be confused about his accusation, but here, Sorao had given himself away with his understanding of the situation.

"I don't know for certain," Masashi answered, "but if I had to guess, I'd say you wanted to be her lover all along. You were disappointed when hearing that she already had one. But thanks to Monokuma's meddling, Futaba was made to forget about her lover, and so to fulfill her desire of love, she turned to you instead, and that's where things turned in your favor!"

Sorao raised his arms halfway. "Come on, man, you don't have proof that I lied, do you? All you have is a guess that I lied by not telling her. The truth is, I forgot about her former lover. I'm not particularly good with remembering things, much as I want to fix that, so that woman simply slipped my mind."

Fortunately, Masashi already had a response to that, having foreseen this kind of response.

"Well… if you truly forgot about it," Masashi said, trying to hide his unease, "then you won't mind it if I tell Futaba about her former lover, right?"

And it was then that all calmness disappeared from the musician's face, looking at him as if threatened.

"N-No way… You surely won't…!" Sorao said, his breath cut short.

"I will." Masashi looked him right in the eye. "I'm sure she'll be really interested in what she's forgotten."

Sorao ground his teeth, stiffened by his threat. Much as he did not like to do this, it was the only way to make Sorao own up to what he had done. Only then would his true intentions be shown at last.

"Nggh… All right. You win." Sorao sighed as he sat down at one of the couches, his head hung down. "I'll tell you the whole story."

Masashi did his best to hide his smile, glad that his plan had worked. "So is everything that I said true?"

"Well, I can't say that it's false," Sorao replied. "I don't deny it: getting into a relationship with Lady Inoshishi was what I wanted, so it helped me to lie to her. That's one of the reasons for the lie."

"'One of'?" Masashi raised his brow.

"Yeah…" Sorao then looked up at him. "It wasn't for my sake only that I lied. It was also... for hers."

"For hers?" Masashi looked dumbly at him, not having expected that response. "I… I don't get it."

Sorao sighed. "Let me put it another way. Suppose that I _hadn't_ lied to her and had told her that she already had a lover. What do you think would have happened next?"

"Well… I expect that she'd have become curious about her lover," Masashi answered.

"Exactly. But don't you see the problem with that? She couldn't in good conscious make me become her lover if she knew already that she had someone else. You know that for sure from our first conversation," Sorao said. "What do you think would happen next?"

"She… She'd want to find out what she'd… forgotten…"

"And the only way to do that is... by killing someone."

Masashi realized with growing dread what Sorao was getting at. He had not imagined it at all, but given that it was the truth behind Sorao's deed, then suddenly, everything became a bit more complicated than he had expected.

"But what about her memories in the Memory Bank?" Masashi suggested. "Can't you let her see her memories in the Memory Bank to satisfy her desire of love?"

After all, he himself had rediscovered some of his memories of Keiko, and he had not felt tempted to kill. It could be the same for Futaba.

Sorao looked astoundedly at him. "What…? Go to the Memory Bank and let her see her memories…? Are you serious?"

"You know her former lover's name, don't you? So you can do that," Masashi replied.

"Yes, but… don't you think it might tempt her even more?" Sorao replied. "Sure, you may think that if it were you, you wouldn't feel tempted at all. But you can't say that for certain about her. If she watched her memories, she might become more tempted to forsake us all and kill to get out of here and find her former lover. It's too risky."

_Too… risky?_

Upon hearing that, Masashi dropped all his protests against Sorao's unwillingness to go with his suggestion. He had a point, after all; the outcome of rediscovering the lost memories by going to the Memory Bank _could_ be the same for Futaba as it had been for him, but on the other hand, it was just as likely that it would be different. He had not fallen for the first motive, but as they all tragically knew, Haruka could not resist it, and so he could hardly think that they were all alike.

"That's why I can't let her be exposed to anything related to her former lover. Not her name, not her memories, _not even her being,_" Sorao said. "Lady Inoshishi had already admitted that at times, she was close to falling for the killing game's temptation. So it's too risky to potentially kindle her desire to kill to discover what she had lost. I can't let it ruin my relationship with her, when it stops her from killing. If she ever killed and succeeded in getting away, she'd be the only survivor; I, her lover, would be lost, so she'd only lose if she were to kill now."

"And… you took into account all this when you agreed to it?" Masashi said.

"Yes." Sorao then looked sternly at him, as if to reassure him that this was no lie. "It was part of my promise to her."

* * *

_"Sorao… Please remember what we talked about the other day," Futaba said, she and her deputy standing in the back. "If Monokuma should try to tempt me with his motive… then you must do whatever you can to help me resist it."_

_Sorao nodded, a strong-willed expression on his face. "And I promise you that I won't forget."_

* * *

"No way… That's why you lied to her?" Masashi uttered, all breath taken from him.

Sorao nodded. "When she said that she loved me… I was so happy. I could then make not only myself happy… but also her! It seemed so good that even I doubted that it was true at first!

"But it was clear that it was no lie. Becoming her lover was the best way to ward her from temptation, so I gladly went along with the lie.

"Masashi... now that you know the whole story behind this… can you in good conscience tell Lady Inoshishi the truth?" Sorao asked, gazing at him with beseeching eyes. "Can you truly tell her, when you know what will likely happen if she learns of this?"

Once he was done, Masashi was at a loss on what to say.

It felt so wrong to hide the truth from her. Futaba deserved to know what she had forgotten, since she would have a far better idea of the weight of her decisions. But on the other hand, he understood why Sorao had done what he had done; it was an awful lie, but he had done it to ward her from the killing game. It was almost cruel that he must think about this at all; in an ideal world, this would not be happening, and they could all live together in harmony.

_But… aren't things all right the way they are?_

A few seconds later, Masashi made a decision.

"No... I can't tell her."

Sorao cracked a little smile. "So you understand now, huh, Masashi?"

"Given how things are right now, I think it's the better option. I don't want to potentially let her feel tempted enough to become a killer," he answered. "But let me make it clear: ideally, I wouldn't lie to her about this at all."

"Well, keep in mind that not all lies are told only to benefit the liar," Sorao said. "Lies can help others as well. In fact, sometimes, the lie is better than the truth... especially when the truth is not in others' benefit to know."

"Yeah... I get it."

Masashi was fully aware that he had been lying to the others about what he had done. He had hidden his motive video and later gone to the Memory Bank in secret, and both had been done only for his benefit. But with Sorao, his lie benefited not only him but also Futaba. If what it took to keep the peace here was a lie, then he had no reason to tell the truth in this case.

"But what are you going to do once our memories come back?" Masashi asked. "She'll remember her relationship with that dancer."

"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Sorao said. "For now, though, my priority is to make sure that she should not fall to temptation.

"Now, if you'll excuse me," he then said as he got up from his seat, "I have an arrangement with Lady Inoshishi. See you later."

Sorao then left, leaving Masashi alone. For a while, Masashi thought about whether he had truly made the right choice by deciding not to tell Futaba, but in the end, he thought it best that he let things be.

* * *

At the dinner meal, Mari asked whether she could say something to the whole group.

"What is it?" Futaba asked.

"It's about the weather," Mari answered. "I've been noticing that the weather has been getting harsher and harsher each day. The signs suggest that a storm may come soon."

Many of the group looked a little worriedly at one another. Up until now, the weather had been swell, even if there were the occasional strong winds at nighttime, but the possibility of stormy weather had not been talked about.

"And what's the problem?" Sayua asked. "If it rains or whatever, we can always just stay inside."

"True, but there's something else that concerns me," Mari replied. "It's about supplies. Monokuma's the one that refills all our food, isn't he?"

"Yeah… Thanks to him, we don't have to worry about how to get food," Sorao answered. "You know, now that you mention it, how does he even do that anyway?"

"If I were to guess," Haruyuki said, "I would think that a ship with supplies comes here at some point in the night. Monokuma or an underling working for him can then refill that which is in low supply."

"Hmm… That sounds plausible," Masashi said. "But if that's true, then what'll happen if there's a storm?"

"Supplies may not come to us…" Faye said, she and a few others realizing the implications.

Sorao frowned as well. "Oh… Well, that wouldn't be good, would it? We have to do something about it. We have to make sure that we won't starve or anything if we ever run out of food in a storm. What's the plan now, Lady Inoshishi?"

"Hmm… I have one idea in mind," she answered. "Captain Monokuma!"

"Yes?" And just like that, Monokuma appeared in their midst, which startled a few of the people near him.

"You've been listening to this conversation, so you are aware of our circumstances," Futaba answered. "Is it possible to deliver some canned food and water to us, just in case an emergency should arise?"

"What, you're concerned about that?" Monokuma said, cocking his head. "_Really?_"

Futaba stared blankly at him. "Have I misspoken?"

"Oh, no, no, I'm just surprised that you're actually thinking responsibly!" Monokuma replied. "Usually, teenagers just laze around and leech off their parents when it comes to basic necessities."

The lady scoffed, her arms crossed. "I would appreciate it if you did not lump me in with that crowd. Anyway, could you fulfill the request?"

"Why, sure I can! According to the weather reports, a storm's coming our way soon, so it's best to get ready!" Monokuma said, trying to look cute as if he were a mascot used in an emergency announcement. "But, uh, since you've just asked me, it'll take a while to deliver supplies."

"A while?" Tanjiro said. "Then when?"

"By my estimate, the supplies will come around six-thirty next morning," Monokuma answered. "Oh, and I can keep delivering you supplies, but only once a day. A batch of supplies should include about thirty cans of food and ten gallons of water."

"That'll be enough," Futaba answered.

"With the current weather, I guess we shouldn't be swimming in the pool for now," Mari said.

"Well, if you want to go swimming, the river should be all right. It's indoors, right?" Sorao said.

Monokuma cocked his head. "What? You don't know? You're not allowed to swim in the river, buddy!"

"Huh?" Sorao said, he and many others looking bemused. "What are you talking about?"

"It's in the brochure, buddy. Swimming in the river's not allowed!" Monokuma then took out the same kind of brochure that Masashi had seen Tanjiro with during the first exploration of the Egyptian palace. Monokuma opened up the brochure to the page that showed a map of the palace and pointed to the part about the river. "See here? 'No one may swim or dive into the river'. We once had an incident where a boat accidentally hit a swimmer, and sure, the guy didn't die, but we put in that rule to avoid having that kind of incident again."

"Huh... It does say that," Tanjiro said, looking with awe at the brochure. "I think I saw that, but forgot to mention it to you guys."

"Either way, we can't swim in the river as well." Sorao sighed as he shook his head. "Man, and here I was, thinking we could have a nice relaxing swimming session."

Once Monokuma left, the others looked more relieved, now that they had some assurance of supplies in case the upcoming storm should prove far stronger than they thought. Masashi was thankful that Monokuma would not deliberately starve them, either to toy with them or to use their disadvantage as part of a motive.

"Uh, I have a question," Tanjiro said. "Will we keep the supplies in the kitchen?"

"Of course. I see no problem with the arrangement," Futaba answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Well… I'm concerned that if an emergency should happen," the writer said, "one of us may end up taking all the resources. After all, there's nothing stopping us from going to the kitchen and taking whatever's inside."

His answer quickly rid the group of the relief that they had just felt, each student looking at one another with eyes filled with suspicion. There were no locks in the kitchen, after all, so the greediest one among them would not be hindered in any way.

"Yeah, that's a good point there!" Sayua said, nodding. "I was about to bring it up, but you know, good job speaking for me, buddy."

"And I can think of a certain person that would underhandedly take our supplies," Maiha said, eyeing Red Mask.

"Hey! Why are you looking at me like that?" the phantom thief said. "What kind of girl do you take me for?"

"Your whole character already shows that you're willing enough to take that which you do not deserve," Maiha replied coldly, looking at her unamusedly.

"Well, I always return whatever I steal, I'll have you know!" Red Mask answered blithely.

"That's not really making it any better, though..." Tanjiro said.

Maiha merely frowned as she gave the thief the evil eye, and from the expressions of some others, it seemed that they too shared feelings of mistrust and suspicion of her.

"Hmm… anyway," Mari said, looking upwards at no particular place, "if we need a place to safely stow our supplies, why not use the second exhibit room for that purpose?"

"Oh, yeah, I guess we can do that," Sorao said. "Though since the supplies will be delivered really early in the morning, Faye and Abraham have some extra work to do."

Abraham scoffed. "The time is no problem for me."

"Y-Yeah… I can handle waking up an hour or so earlier than usual," Faye replied.

"Then it's settled," Futaba said. "We shall do whatever we can to prepare for whatever may come our way."

* * *

After the dinner meal ended, all the students split off as usual. Abraham, who had not eaten dinner yet, having declined as usual, stayed here, cleaning up the others' messes. The only other ones who stayed as well were Sister Hikari and Kumi.

"S-Sister Hikari?" Kumi said, who looked a little tired, if his eyes were any sign, "When are we getting our memories back?"

"Oh, Kumi… I wish I could say for sure," Sister Hikari said, who too looked a bit tired, though she kept her usual gladsome tone in her voice, "but I assure you, they will come back eventually, one way or another. In the meantime, we must not waver in this trying time. This is yet another trial of hardship that we must endure and overcome."

"Hey, is something the matter?" Masashi asked.

Sister Hikari widened her eyes a little. "Oh, Masashi! Well, as you may have seen, Kumi's still having trouble coping with the loss of his memories of his darling."

"If I may ask, who's his darling, anyway?" Masashi wondered how important that person was to Kumi and whether that person might have anything to do with Kumi's eccentricity.

"Ah, well… Actually, I've been meaning to talk to you about that. Hold on." She then turned toward the storyteller with a bright smile. "Oh, Kumi, I'll be talking about something with Masashi for a while. Could you stay in your seat and choose a story of yours to read me later?"

"R-Really?!" Kumi said, eyes beaming. "I-I'd love to read you another story of mine! All right, I'll think very hard about which one we should read! I promise you, it'll be wonderful!"

As Kumi took our his book of fantastic tales from his satchel, Sister Hikari led Masashi to another part of the dining room.

"Well, to begin with," Sister Hikari said, now showing a more serious look on her face, "from what I can tell, he can't remember anything about his mother. He can hardly remember anything about his father, either."

"Huh?" Masashi said. "Wait, but how? Didn't Monokuma erase only one person from his memories?"

"Well, yes, but if you think about it, there is a plausible explanation for it," Sister Hikari replied. "Monokuma said that he'd erased all memories of our darlings. That means that the other people in those memories have been erased as well. We may still remember those other people as long as they aren't in any memories featuring our darlings."

"So we can easily guess that most of his memories of his father featured his mother as well…"

Masashi sighed, not having realized how nefarious the motive could be. Though he had forgotten about Keiko until he had found the motive video, he had remembered such people as his parents and his friends, because he had spent time with them without having his sister involved.

Sister Hikari nodded. "Uh, Masashi, this may sound odd, but… I'm not sure how much his well-being will improve once our memories come back."

Masashi looked at her bemusedly. "Huh? What do you mean?"

The nun scratched a side of her neck. "I'm not sure whether you know this already, but… according to Kumi, he lives in a small orphanage. Even though he says he lives a happy life at the orphanage, it still doesn't change the fact that his parents aren't there for him anymore."

"Oh… And does Kumi remember why he was put in an orphanage in the first place?"

Sister Hikari shook her head. "Kumi remembers that he was put in the orphanage at a really young age, as well as the fact that he's been there for years… And he's aware that something must've happened to his parents, but he doesn't know what. And it's something that bothers him a little, he tells me. Is there anything that you suggest that I do?"

Masashi then looked at the storyteller, who was blithely going through the pages of his book of fantastic tales. Seeing how gentle and innocent he was made it all the drearier to think about what might have separated him from his parents. Masashi could hardly imagine what it would be like to lose his own parents; it was bad enough to be trapped in a killing game, but at least he was sure that one day, he could go back home and see his parents again.

"Well, there's nothing else you can do about that issue right now," Masashi said. "You can deal with it once our memories come back. But until then, all we have is speculation. What you're doing now to take care of him is good enough."

Sister Hikari sighed, looking a bit disappointed. "Yes… That's pretty much I expected you to say. I wish there were more I could do, but I can see that there's no use thinking more about it." Sister Hikari let out a small yawn, covering her mouth with her hand. "By the way, I was hoping that the problem of Kumi's nightmares wouldn't come back, but for the last two nights, he's been plagued with them. And to top it all off, they've gotten worse. Last night, he dreamt that Monokuma captured us and wolfed on our brains before eating our bodies. He woke up just as Monokuma was about to eat his brain...

"I've tried whatever I can to soothe him and make sure that he should know how to deal with them, but…" She rubbed her eyes before yawning again. "Oh, excuse me. I feel a little…"

"Overworked," Masashi finished for her. "You really should take a break, Sister Hikari. I appreciate what you've done, but we all have limits. In fact, you should rest tomorrow."

Sister Hikari widened her eyes, as if horrified by the suggestion. "But I can't very well do that! Ever since the nightmares started, I've had to take good care of him!"

"Still, if you overwork yourself, it'll hurt you in the long run!" Masashi insisted. "Tell you what: maybe I could look after Kumi tomorrow, while you spend the day tomorrow taking a break."

"No, no, you can't! I mustn't burden you like that!"

"It's no burden, really!" Masashi said determinedly. "Trust me, I'm more than glad to look after him in your stead!"

"But…"

"Sister Hikari, I appreciate that you want to keep on helping the rest of us," Masashi said, "but you can't help others if you can't help yourself."

The nun returned another bewildered gaze at him. "Well… if that's what you insist, then… I suppose I can't afford to jeopardize my health. Very well, then. Just this once, I'll rest. I'll tell him later that I won't be with him tomorrow."

Masashi smiled. "After all your hard work, you deserve it."

Just then, however, the sound of dishes falling onto the floor echoed throughout the room.

"M-My God!" Sister Hikari squealed.

It was none other than Abraham, who had fallen onto the floor as well, the broken remains of the dishes scattered before him.

"Aah! What's going on?!" Kumi said, rushing over while holding onto his book.

"Abraham! Are you all right?" Masashi said as he moved to help him get up.

"U-Ugh…" Abraham groaned, lying flatly on the ground. "D-Don't…"

As Masashi tried to pick him up, however, Abraham weakly waved him away. "_Don't you touch me!_ I… I'm all right!"

"Y-You don't look so all right to me!" Kumi said.

Nonetheless, Masashi thought to hold back his help once he saw Abraham begin to rise. In a few seconds, Abraham slowly managed to get back up, though his expression showed a little dizziness and weakness. It took a few more seconds until he seemed to have gotten all his bearings.

"Are you all right?" Sister Hikari asked. "You certainly gave us quite a scare!"

Abraham frowned as he dusted off his black vest. "I assure you, I'm all right. I just happened to slip and fall."

"Then it must've been a fairy!" Kumi replied, nodding along. "I wouldn't be surprised if the fairy had wanted to play mischief on you and had made you trip!"

Abraham deepened his frown. "What a load of bull—I mean… what imaginative thinking you've got there. I mustn't forget about etiquette and proper behavior while at work..." He then sighed as he looked down at the broken dishes. "Great. Just great. Now I have to clean it all up."

It was then that Masashi noticed that Abraham appeared to be rather tired, the face and the slightly slouching posture a dead giveaway.

"Hey, Abraham, you don't look so good," Masashi said. "Have you been taking care of yourself?"

"Wh-What? What do you mean?" Abraham said, staring at him coldly.

"You know, making sure to eat well, sleep enough, and whatnot."

Abraham looked away, giving him a sidelong glance instead. "I assure you, I am in sound condition. You're making a mountain out of an anthill."

"Still… even if you're only a little tired, you shouldn't neglect your health."

The waiter merely scoffed as he headed off to the kitchen and came back with a broom and a dustpan. "There's no need for any more concern, so I ask that you not bug me with any more of your questions. And besides..." Abraham then grimaced, as if about to talk about a topic that he did not particularly like. "I haven't eaten dinner yet, and I prefer to eat without your company."

* * *

**Merry Christmas, everyone! This is a pretty lengthy chapter, but it's pretty important, for one reason or another. And just in case this needs to be said, you don't have to agree with everything that Masashi does, even though he's the protagonist. I wasn't surprised to see that none of you apparently saw Sorao in a positive light after the previous chapter's events, so I guess that the outcome of the confrontation against Sorao likely would've been different if you'd been in Masashi's shoes.**

**By the way, to help you guys, every now and then, I'll remind you which characters I've shown off in Free Time Events. **

**Chapter 1: Kumi, Haruka, Futaba, Sorao, Faye, and Arashi**

**Chapter 2: Sister Hikari, Abraham, Mari, Tanjiro, Murphy, and Sayua**

**Of the surviving students, Haruyuki, Hikari, Maiha, and Red Mask have yet to be shown off. Of course, that doesn't necessarily mean that they'll all survive this chapter; after all, Atsushi never got a Free Time Event, and yet he was still killed.**


	20. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (6)

"I almost have you now, fairy!"

Kumi ran around the garden on the woodland kingdom's third deck, his eyes focused on the ever fleeting sight of fairies. Meanwhile, Masashi watched nearby, chuckling at the storyteller's bumbling attempts to catch the fantastic creature. He was also meant to look for fairies, but at some point, he thought to stop and look at the boy playing around instead. Right now, as it had been agreed yesterday, Sister Hikari was relaxing elsewhere, so for the whole day, he was to keep an eye on him. And as he wanted to have enough energy to bear with him, Masashi had decided not to go to the Memory Bank last night. Much as he wanted to see Keiko again, he felt content enough with what he had remembered of her now.

"Whoa, careful there!" Masashi cried out once he saw Kumi frolicking by the stream that ran through the garden. Kumi appeared to take heed, but a few seconds later, as he ran toward Masashi, he tripped, the crown of leaves on his head knocked over and landing a few feet before Masashi.

"Aww, the fairy's gotten away!" Kumi bemoaned as he stood back up and dusted off the translucent wings attached to his green blouse.

"You're not hurt, though, are you?" Masashi said as he picked up the crown and handed him it.

"Oh, no, no, this is nothing!" Kumi answered as he put the crown back on his head. "I've been chasing after fairies for a long time, so I'm used to finding myself like this in this game of hide-and-seek!"

Masashi chuckled. So far, the day was going splendidly. There was a little trouble in the morning, as last night Kumi had had a great amount of trouble in falling asleep, fearing lest he fall victim to another nightmare; thankfully, no such thing had happened, and it did not take long to get Kumi to act like his usual blithesome and carefree disposition. Indeed, Kumi had declared that he could not wait to have lots of fun today.

"Those fairies must be really worthwhile to catch," Masashi remarked.

"Indeed, they are!" Kumi said, eyes beaming. "Men say that fairies can grant one special powers. And as it turns out, what kind of special powers is granted depends on the fairy! One could get a boost in fire magic if the fairy is of the fire affinity, for example!"

"Uh huh…" Masashi nodded along. "So do you know any magic, then?"

"Um… sorry, but I don't," Kumi answered a bit dejectedly. "So far, all the fairies I've caught aren't of any magical affinity. A lot of fairies are normal and have given me lots of fairy dust, but I haven't gotten any magic yet. Fairies of magical affinities are said to be really, really rare. I've seen a few, but they always manage to evade me!"

Masashi feigned a disappointed sigh. "Aww, that's too bad. I really wish I could see a fairy myself."

"Oh, but you will!" Kumi said, hopping about excitedly. "Even if you haven't found a fairy yet, eventually, one will come your way! No man has avoided a fairy's mischief!"

"Well, if that's what you say, who am I to disagree?" Masashi said. "By the way… do you have any ideas for a new story right now?"

Masashi figured that getting him to stay put by having him write a story would be much less tiring. And moreover, he wanted to see how the Ultimate Storyteller worked. He himself was no writer; he did moderately well in essays and compositions, but when it came to writing fiction, he could come up with many ideas, but actually writing them down and making something coherent was challenging.

Kumi grinned. "I have many ideas, Sir Masashi! In fact, I've been meaning to write a story with you in it!"

"With me?" Masashi said.

"Oh, yes, when I say 'you', I mean a character based on you!" Kumi explained. "You saved me from all the nasty accusations during the class trial, so I think you'll make a good hero! In fact, I've thought of a good beginning for your story!

"Once upon a time, there lived an adventurer named Masashi, and he fared throughout the Kingdom of Starkland, ever seeking excitement and treasure. One day, he stopped at the castle of the Duke of Ashwold, and the duke, impressed by his tales of greatness, besought him to help him deal with a bandit gang led by a wicked woman by the name of Sayua. The bandits had been stealing food from the duke's subjects for the last few nights, and much to the duke's frustration, when he had tried to capture the bandit gang, Sayua and Tanjiro, her crafty right-hand man, had managed to escape. Masashi, ever so keen to help others, agreed to help the duke, and so he thought of a trap to capture the two remaining bandits… Ah! I should be writing this all down!"

Kumi then took out his book, a quill, and a bottle of ink. After dipping the quill in the ink, he turned to a certain page of his book and quickly scribbled thereon, looking at his work with such intensity as if setting aside everything else around him. Such a sight made Masashi speechless, for he could not believe that Kumi had quickly come up with all that with his active imagination. After a few minutes, Kumi let out a sigh of relief as he looked with awe at his work.

"Isn't it awesome, Sir Masashi?!" Kumi said, smiling so innocently that it would be cruel to gainsay him. "You're now in a tale of mine!"

Masashi chuckled heartily. "If you finish it, I'm sure everyone will like it very much."

_Well, everyone but Sayua and Tanjiro, _Masashi thought, _but I don't think they're going to appear on Kumi's list of favorites any time soon…_

* * *

It was around a quarter to eight, the outside dark and covered with dark clouds above, the winds strong and harsh, the rain having started to fall. As Mari had said yesterday, the storm was indeed to come soon. Masashi had watched over Kumi for the whole afternoon, and by now, Masashi had grown a bit tired, the storyteller ever so keen to run about, read him his tales, and help him in his sundry schemes to lure fairies and other fantastic creatures out. When he had met with Sister Hikari during dinner, she had said that her time with Kumi more or less went like that, though her workload had been made heavier with her attempts to soothe Kumi from his latest nightmare; it must have been a matter of luck that Masashi had not had to tend to that matter.

Now, he and the storyteller were walking to the Egyptian palace, as Masashi had gotten Kumi to agree to trying out the bumper cars in the third deck. Masashi had even gotten a few others to join them for the occasion, so he was sure that the night would end with a lot of fun.

"I can't wait for the ride!" Kumi said, looking at Sir Teddybane, his teddy bear donned in armor, as they walked through the second deck. "Maybe if we're lucky, a rare fairy or even a dragon will appear later!"

_A dragon? That's rather wishful thinking there!_ Masashi thought. _And I wonder what Kumi's idea of a dragon is—_

"Ooh, a fairy! And of the earth affinity!"

All of a sudden, Kumi started running, apparently having seen a fairy appear yet again. The chase was short, however, as Kumi ran right into the door of the first exhibit room, and since only Faye had the key to the room, he could proceed no further.

"Aah! I can't believe that the fairy shrank itself and moved through the gaps to the other side of the door!" Kumi said as he rubbed his forehead and adjusted the laurel wreath worn on his head. "This is why fairy hunting is best done in open areas!"

Such an incident wherein Kumi had become instantly distracted by a fairy's sight had been all too common these last few hours, and so Masashi was no longer surprised to see Kumi act like this.

After trying to open the door to no avail, Kumi looked at the door frustratingly. "There has to be a way to get inside! There has to!"

"Wait, you're not going to try to go inside, are you?" Masashi asked, eyeing him amusedly.

"But I have to, Sir Masashi! Fairies can pass through doors, but they can't pass through solid walls, so it's trapped in there!" Kumi answered. "And if I get it, I'll be bestowed with some magic at last!"

"But there's no way to get inside other than the door, Kumi," Masashi pointed out.

Just then, however, Kumi let out a small gasp. "Oh, I remember now! When I came here the first time with Sister Hikari, I saw a vent in the first exhibit room! If I find the vent it's connected to, I'll be able to get into the room! Then I can capture the earth fairy!"

Masashi sighed. Kumi's fantasies had been entertaining to watch, but without stewardship, the storyteller would try to do reckless things and perhaps unwittingly cause chaos.

"Two problems with that," Masashi replied. "One, it's against the rules to climb through the vents. Remember what Monokuma said?'

"O-Oh… Oh, yeah, I forgot about that…" Kumi said, his glee quickly fleeting.

"And two, even if you went through the vent and somehow stopped the fairy from fleeing through it, the fairy could just go through the second exhibit room's door, couldn't it?" Masashi continued. "I'm pretty sure there's no vent in that room, so you'd need to ask Abraham to unlock the door. And what do you think are the chances that he'd agree to do that for you?"

Kumi frowned a little, pouting as he realized the impossibility of such an agreement. "Gah… That Abraham sure is mean. Why can't he be as nice as he is when he works as a waiter?"

"Well, people act differently in different situations. Adults don't act at home the way they act at work, for instance."

Masashi recalled from one memory that Keiko had gotten confused when trying to speak in honorific and humble speech, which she was expected to know as a maid. Of course, in her everyday life, she spoke like a normal human being, so these new forms of speech was not so easy to master. Still, even in her everyday life, Keiko was kind, even if a bit snide at times; Abraham, on the other hand, was standoffish and unfriendly for no apparent reason, so he agreed that the waiter could lighten up a bit.

"Anyway," Masashi said, "let's not keep the others waiting any longer. I'm afraid you'll have to let the earth fairy go this time."

Staring at the door for a few more seconds, Kumi then sighed as he hung his head. "A-All right, then… I guess my time to become a mage will have to come later…"

He then waved toward the door. "Farewell, earth fairy! May we see each other soon!"

Afterwards, the two headed downstairs and entered the room wherein they were to have fun with the bumper cars. There, five others had already arrived and were now standing around: Haruyuki, Arashi, Tanjiro, Sayua, and Mari.

_Wait, where are Faye and Sorao?_ Masashi thought, puzzled.

"Ah, you've come at last," Haruyuki said. "We've been waiting for you for a long while."

"Yeah, I was beginning to think you wouldn't come," Mari said, gazing at him a bit distantly.

"Oh, well, sorry about that," Masashi said. "We had to take care of a little business."

"Who wants to take a fucking guess what this 'little business' was?" Sayua scoffed, eyeing condescendingly at Kumi. It was a wonder that she had even agreed to Masashi's invitation, as she would have rather picked someone else.

"There's no reason to delve into the reasons for the delay, I say. What matters is that we are all here now," Haruyuki said. Masashi had asked him to be the one to press the button to start up the bumper cars; the art critic had no plans to actually join them, insisting that he was keener to watch the game from the sidelines.

The nine cars were all designed like chariots, the back wheels only for show, as the cars ran on electricity drawn from the floor.

"Hey, do you know where Faye and Sorao are?" Masashi asked. Sorao had been there when he had asked Futaba to join. Though she had declined, Sorao had agreed to join, so he had assumed that he would come. And Faye had gladly accepted his invitation, so without them both, there were fewer players than Masashi had desired.

"Oh, after dinner, I heard that Sorao felt a bit under the weather, so he's now recovering in his room," Tanjiro answered.

"And Miss Nirigiri said that she felt tired as well, so she's gone to bed early!" Arashi said. "She said she's sorry for her absence!"

_Huh, really..._ Masashi, for a moment, wondered whether it was simply a coincidence that they both had apparently felt the need to go rest in their rooms, but he figured that things like that naturally happened every now and then, and so there was no need to put off this event for their sake.

"Uh, so could we get started already?" Kumi said, still holding his teddy bear. "Sir Teddybane and I want to see what it's like to ride a bumper car!"

"Oh, yeah, we'll have lots of fun!" Arashi said excitedly, fists pumped.

"You betcha! In fact, let me help!"

All the students lessened in their mirth upon hearing their captain's voice. Monokuma popped up, showing a very delighted expression.

"What do you want?" Masashi asked, eyeing him with unkind eyes.

"Hey, didn't you hear? I want to help you guys out with your night!" Monokuma answered. "I have an idea to make this whole game a bit more… _competitive_."

Haruyuki raised his eyes slightly. "'Competitive'? What do you mean?"

"I mean, people usually ride bumper cars because it's fun to bump into one another," Monokuma replied. "But you know what would make things more fun? Keeping track of how many times each person slams into one another with lots of force and purpose! Don't you want to be known as that guy that goes out of his way to hit as many people as he can without having to care about traffic laws?!"

"Hmm… Now that I think about it, it may be a lot of fun to turn it into a friendly fight," Mari said.

"An interesting proposal," Haruyuki remarked.

The others soon grew to like the idea, since the only other ride available for them, the merry-go-round and its Haunted Woods version, was not competitive at all, and so it was good to have a means of having a friendly competition.

"But who'll be keeping track of the points?" Tanjiro asked.

Monokuma giggled as he swayed his body. "Why else do you think your kind captain has decided to come see you guys? I'll gladly keep track of all the times you bump into one another, and I'll tell you your score!"

"Really?" Masashi said. "Are you sure you're the best judge for it?"

The captain then hung his head. "When you say it like that, it means you really, really doubt my abilities. And here I thought, all you guys knew about how advanced my A.I. is…"

Masashi sighed. "All right, all right, you can act as the scorekeeper. All I ask is that you not interfere, though."

"Of course I won't do that!" Monokuma said, back to his blithe disposition. "I'll have you know, I went to the Official Academy of Scorekeeping and worked my ass off to get my license!" Monokuma then clapped his paws together. "Now let's do this thing! The game lasts three minutes! If two cars collide with each other headlong, the one with the stronger impact gets the point!"

The players then headed into their bumper cars, most of the players looking at one another with such intensity as if there were truly something at stake here. As soon as Haruyuki pressed a certain button of the nearby machine panel, the bumper cars started to move, and for the first few seconds, all steered around, testing out the controls. Not long after, however, there began to be screams and hollers.

"I'm gonna get you!"

Arashi ran his car right into Tanjiro's car, which made the writer recoil a bit before spinning around and trying to escape his foe. Meanwhile, Kumi, riding around with apparently no direction in mind, was then bumped on the front by Sayua, who looked rather keen to become the winner. The impact quickly made the blissful excitement on his face disappear, replacing it with shock and confusion. He must have expected things to go more smoothly than whatever fantastic image he had in mind for bumper cars.

"Get him, get him! He'll give you free points!" Sayua yelled.

Many of the others then tried to run into Kumi, only to bump into each other, which was expected when more than five cars were going toward the same place. Exploiting the chaos of the situation, Sayua rushed not at Kumi but at the others, sneering as she rammed into Masashi, who could not believe how hectic the game had already become. Meanwhile, Kumi, looking confused as well, managed to get out of the pile of cars, only to be bumped by Tanjiro.

"Aah! Someone save me!" Kumi cried out, but to no avail as Tanjiro quickly rushed out of the scene.

Sayua laughed as she crashed into Masashi, who was moving about a bit haphazardly after being hit by Mari. Just as he tried to bump her in return, however, Tanjiro, wittingly or unwittingly, moved right between them, as if acting as her shield, and thus let her slip away. In no time, the cheerleader hit Arashi and Masashi again, who had hit only Tanjiro and Mari so far.

_Sorry, Kumi, but I'd like to become the winner as well!_ Masashi thought as he crashed into him from behind. He then narrowly avoided an attack from Sayua and managed to hit Arashi and Tanjiro on the side without being attacked by them in return.

"Mmm… What an experience," Mari said plainly as she hit Kumi from behind. Then, by a stroke of dumb luck, Mari turned just as Sayua was about to run into her, and the cheerleader instead hit Tanjiro, which caused her not to hit Masashi in return, and he could then hit Arashi. It was amazing how things could add up like that.

Eventually, three minutes had passed, and Haruyuki pressed the button to make all the cars stop. Sayua groaned since she was about to get another point from ramming into Kumi.

"All right, all right, gather around, everyone!" Monokuma said, jumping up and down. "After watching you closely and impartially… I've managed to calculate your rankings! Here they are!"

Monokuma then opened up his mouth, and a piece of paper came out of it, which startled a few of the others:

SAYUA TOMI - 25 pts

MASASHI KOUSAKI - 17 pts

TANJIRO URATA - 14 pts

ARASHI SEIYA - 11 pts

MARI ANZAI - 10 pts

TAKUMI TAKAMITSU - 5 pts

Sayua sneered. "Told you guys I was gonna be number one! It was pretty clear from the start, really."

"I can't say you didn't try your best…" Tanjiro said, eyeing her uneasily.

Arashi groaned, his head hung down. "Oh… I was hoping I'd get into the top three at least! I can't believe I got into the bottom three instead!"

"Hmm… Well, I got what I got," Mari said, looking neither happy nor sad at this outcome.

Meanwhile, Kumi looked at the results with a confused expression. "Um… is it really true that I got last place?"

"Yes, and as far as I could tell, everyone was keen to hit you to score some easy points," Haruyuki answered, who had looked at the scene with a mix of mirth and cold observation. "For the times when you scored a point, it was due to your confusion as you unwittingly ran into the others while trying to flee. But most of the time, you ended up moving erratically, but not so erratically that it was hard to get out of your way. Thus, you often hit the edges of the arena instead. Tell me, how do you feel about that?"

"Well… it'd have been swell if I'd managed to score a bit higher." Kumi then showed a bright smile. "But in the end, I had a lot of fun with it! It really was fun riding bumper cars!"

Masashi chuckled heartily. "I'm glad to hear that, Kumi. It's a fun way to spend the rest of tonight, isn't it?"

* * *

It was about forty-five minutes after nine, and Masashi and Kumi were now back in the woodland kingdom's garden. Masashi had wanted to take Kumi back to his room and tuck him into bed, but Kumi had insisted that he be allowed to spend a few more minutes hunting for fairies. Not wanting to ruin the night for him, Masashi had agreed to letting him go on one last fairy hunt for tonight.

"O fairy, where could you be hiding?" Kumi said playfully as he tiptoed around and looked carefully at the floor.

Masashi looked at the sight, wondering at how much effort he had put in looking after the storyteller. Though it had been incredibly tiring to spend the whole day with him, the innocence and happiness that he showed made it hard to tell him to change his ways. And even though Kumi had stayed in last place for all the games of bumper cars that they had played, he seemed nonetheless content with the experience, finding more joy in partaking in the ride than in the competition.

Once done with Kumi, Masashi planned to go to the dining room and get a quick snack and drink. He needed a break after all this, and he felt all the sorrier that he had to let Sister Hikari go back to this, given that she, in his opinion, needed a few more days to relax. But he knew that telling her to relax that long would have been unacceptable for her, so he could only wish her good health.

_It's sweet that things are like this, though…_ Masashi thought as he glanced elsewhere. It was rather reminiscent of what he could recall of a certain memory of his early childhood years, when he, Keiko, and a few other kids would play around in the neighborhood for hours. Yes, it would be swell if those blissful days had no end, so that they might play forever and ever...

"Oh! I see you now! I see you now! I see… you… now…"

And it was then that Masashi heard a quiet but all too telling thud.

"Wh-What the…?" Masashi widened his eyes upon seeing the storyteller lying flat on the front. "Kumi! Kumi! _Kumi!_"

He rushed toward him and felt his pulse. Thankfully, he was still alive, but Kumi was not responding to him at all, his eyes shut, as if he were fast asleep. His appearance had a certain serenity, even though the actual situation was far too different from what Masashi would like.

"Hey, what's going on?"

It was Sayua, who had just walked down the stairs from the second deck. She had been relaxing at the dining room, so she must have been on the way back to her room.

"Sayua! Thank God you're here!" Masashi said, looking at her with a fearful expression. "Kumi's collapsed!"

"What? He has?" Sayua scoffed. "Did you knock his lights out with a punch or something? I certainly would've done it if I'd been around him too long."

"Now's not the time for jokes!" Masashi replied. "He must've collapsed from exhaustion! These last few days, he's been having trouble with nightmares and sleeping, so he must've tried to stay awake the whole time today!"

Masashi could not believe that he had neglected the possibility that Kumi too needed rest. Sister Hikari had been truthful enough to admit it, but Kumi must have thought that he was all right, trying to ignore any negative effects of his sleeping problems. And Kumi had said that he wanted to have fun the whole day, and for the lively storyteller, resting in bed seemed like the antithesis of that.

It seemed so cruel that tonight had to end like this. It was as if all the good luck that he had had up until now had been all for naught.

"Well, what are you gonna do about him now?" Sayua asked, looking none too worried.

Masashi sighed. "We should take him to his room and tuck him into bed."

"What, you want me to help? Come on, can't you do it by yourself? The idiot shouldn't be too heavy to lift."

"It's not that hard, but it'll be easier if you help!"

After a few seconds, Sayua gave in and agreed to help. She carried him by the legs, whereas Masashi carried him by the upper body, and then the two quickly walked through the hallway and then down to the fourth deck, encountering no one. They then arrived at Kumi's door.

"Sorry, Kumi, but I can't get your door open if I don't do this."

Masashi opened up the storyteller's satchel and searched through it. There were many such items as his teddy bear, his book of tales, several quills, a few bottles of ink, and some parchment, but beneath them all was his Monopad only.

"Uh, did you think about searching his pockets first?" Sayua said, looking mildly amused.

"Oh!" He slapped his forehead. "I can't believe I didn't do that!"

Masashi had been so panicked that he had not done the most common-sense option first. He checked the pockets of Kumi's dark-green trousers, and he found the keycard in his left pocket. Once the door was unlocked, he and Sayua picked up the boy, moved him inside, and set him on his bed.

"U-Ugh… No, no, don't do that…" Kumi mumbled, his eyes still shut. It seemed that he was still asleep, neither he nor Sayua having awakened him during the whole ordeal.

Masashi sighed. Thankfully, it seemed that Kumi had only succumbed to that which he had tried to avoid all this time; no other serious symptoms seemed to have appeared. Hopefully, Kumi would have a good long sleep for the rest of the night, because he needed it greatly.

Afterwards, they removed his satchel, set it on his bedside, and tucked the boy into his bed. There was a nightlight nearby, and Masashi figured that Kumi needed it whenever he slept, so he made sure to turn it on.

"Hey, don't you think that you should tell that Sister Hikari woman about this?" Sayua said, sounding unusually thoughtful about this. Maybe a few seconds of helping him had helped her realize the gravity of the situation.

"Yeah, good point," Masashi said. Kumi might be doing better now, but it would be untruthful of him if he were to keep this hidden from her.

"Then go look for her! She should still be in the dining room," Sayua said. "Don't worry, I'll watch over him. I'll make sure that nothing bad happens to him."

"Oh, thank you! I'll be right back!" Masashi was glad that Sayua for once was not trying to back out of this. Without wasting any more time, Masashi rushed out of the door, leaving her with him in his room.

He ran to the second deck, not stopping for even a second, and luckily, just as he had arrived, Sister Hikari came out of the door to the dining room.

"Oh, Masashi, what's happened?" Sister Hikari asked, looking a bit alarmed. "Your expression doesn't look good at all."

He quickly explained to her what had happened, and by the end of it, Sister Hikari had looked at him with fully worried eyes, all composure gone from her face, and the two began their trip back to his room at once.

"I can't believe I didn't think to ask Kumi to rest!" Sister Hikari said fearfully along the way. "He kept insisting that he was all right, despite the nightmares, but I should've known that he was only trying to pretend the nightmares were no problem!"

Masashi and Sister Hikari arrived at Kumi's room, where Sayua still stood by him. Sister Hikari examined him for a few minutes before letting out a sigh of relief.

"Thankfully, he seems to be simply asleep now, and I don't sense anything like a fever from him," Sister Hikari said. "I think that he'll be all right after some rest. Hopefully, there won't be any more nightmares for him."

"Yeah, it really feels as if all the bad things that have happened to him had been leading to this moment," Masashi said. "Hopefully… this is the end of his ordeal."

"So are we done here?" Sayua said. "He's gonna be all right, so it means we've got no more business with him, right?"

"Well… even though this incident frightens me greatly, I don't think there's anything else that we can do for him right now," Sister Hikari said, a pained look on her face. "I think we should just let him have his sleep. I'll check up on him tomorrow morning."

"Make sure to take his keycard," Masashi said. "If he doesn't wake up tomorrow for whatever reason, you need to be able to get into his room."

"Ah, right."

Seeing nothing else to take care of, the three then shut off the main lights to Kumi's room and headed outside, Sister Hikari taking Kumi's keycard. Once the door was shut, Sister Hikari and Sayua went back to their rooms. For some reason, Masashi swore that he had seen a smirk on the cheerleader's face, but he thought nothing of it, feeling all too tired, and so went back to his room and fell asleep.

* * *

The storm last night had made it somewhat hard to fall asleep. Even though the room was soundproof, not all sounds could be blocked out, and thunder was one of those that could enter the room. Masashi did not know when he had fallen asleep, but when he woke up and looked out the window, the weather outside had become calm again. There were still many dark clouds outside, however, and the waves still crashed against one another strongly, which meant that the storm had not gone away yet.

Ready as usual, he headed to the dining room, seeing no one, not even Arashi or Sister Hikari, on the way. It was eerie to see these halls quiet and empty, even though he knew that there were fifteen other people aboard.

_I wonder whether they all feel under the weather or something…_ Masashi recalled Kumi's fall, Abraham's accidental breaking of the dishes, and the drop in liveliness among many of the others. The first two appeared to have no connection to the motive, but it was uncanny, nonetheless, that they had happened after the giving of the motive.

When he arrived at the dining room, he saw only Faye standing by a table and staring off into space. The time was about seven-thirty.

"Oh, hey, Masashi…" Faye flashed him a weak smile. "Not very nice weather, is it?"

"No, not at all," Masashi answered. "Where are the others?"

"I think they're still asleep. The storm last night was incredibly rough, so they may have had trouble going to sleep," Faye said with a half-hearted tone. "I couldn't fall asleep that easily as well. I even looked outside my window to pass the time, but all I saw was… wrathful waves. Sorry, I can't think of a good way to say it, but…"

"Oh, no, I understand," Masashi replied as he sat down at a nearby table. He had not seen the weather outside last night, but her simple description was enough to imagine it. "By the way… Faye, are you all right?"

"Wh-What, me? Of course I am…" the patissier said, eyeing him nervously. "Wh-Why do you ask?"

"Well… to be truthful, you've been acting a bit weirdly lately," Masashi said. "First, you went to bed early last night, so I'm a little worried about your health. And secondly, you don't talk so much as you usually do."

Faye let out an unsure chuckle. "Wh-What? Are you sure about that? I simply felt a little tired last night, so I needed the rest! And I'm pretty sure I still talk a lot! Really, it's the truth!"

For a simple airing of his concern, she seemed rather flustered and keen to say otherwise. It was pretty obvious that all was not well with her.

"Well, even so, is there something you'd like to talk about with me?" Masashi figured that a more roundabout approach was needed here, since she would not admit that there was a problem any time soon. "I'm all ears."

Faye scratched her cheek. "Really? Well… there is one thing I guess I can talk about."

"What is it?"

She sighed as she hung her head. "It's Abraham. You have no idea how much he irks me. I mean, yesterday morning, when we were supposed to wake up early to get the emergency supplies and move them to the exhibit room, he chided me for being late."

"You were late?" Masashi said.

"Well, I can't help it! I take a while to get ready in the morning, so by the time I was done, fifteen minutes past the agreed time had passed," Faye said, sounding a bit angry. "Abraham kept complaining about how long I'd kept him waiting! And he said it in his ugly, uncouth speech! I mean, all right, I may have taken too long, but did he really have to put it like that?"

"That must've been really tough," Masashi said, nodding along. He could hardly imagine having to wake up really early and work with the man when he was not even working as a waiter and thus had no reason to speak politely.

"I know! And it was the same this morning," Faye continued. "I was late, and he insulted me. You want to know how? He said something like 'It's a waste of time to point out how much you're a fucking mess'. Can you believe that?!" Faye then slammed her hand against the table, which made Masashi flinch. "It's insulting, unproductive, and needlessly condescending!"

"Y-Yeah… It sure sounds like it," Masashi said, shocked at how fired up she now was.

"I swear, I'd give him a good yelling at so that he might think twice about talking to me like that," Faye said. "But that'd be what an uncouth and brash person would do, and I can't very well stoop down to his level… Yes, I'm better than that… I'm _definitely_ better than that… right?"

"Oh, of course!" Masashi replied. "You two are definitely on different levels."

Faye sighed, cracking a small but somewhat odd smile. "Ah… It feels good to hear that from you. I really appreciate it."

Though her expression appeared hardly any better, on the whole, she seemed to look a bit less skittish and unnerved. Masashi was glad that he could help her, even if only a little.

"By the way, are you going to cook breakfast now?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, no, I think I'll wait for more of the others to wake up first," Faye answered. "I don't want the food to go cold, you see. You should take a walk in the meantime."

"Yeah, I think I will," Masashi said, thinking that the morning would be the only time today to enjoy the sights outside. "Is anyone else awake?"

"Oh, yes, Mari should be outside now. We saw her after we came here the second time for the gallons of water, since we moved the cans of food first," she said. "She's now staring at the sea. Kinda weird, but I guess if she's not doing anything funny, it doesn't matter much."

"From what I can tell, she's an outdoorsy girl, so it's not surprising to hear that," Masashi replied. "Any others?"

"Oh, we saw Murphy going to the arts and crafts room. I'm not sure whether anyone else is up and about, since I was busy sorting things out in the kitchen a while ago, so be aware of that," Faye answered. "And by the way, Abraham's now relaxing in the palace's lounge, so if you're looking for him for any reason, he's there."

Seeing that there was nothing else to talk about, Masashi left the kitchen and headed out to the main deck. The weather was even worse than he had thought; a stiff wind blew, showing hardly any signs of stopping, and Masashi was forced to keep his hands in his pockets to keep warm. The whole deck had been covered in water, and so he had to walk around with careful steps. Mari was walking about the deck, but after they bade each other good morning, she had little to say other than how much she wondered at last night's storm.

"It certainly was stronger than I'd expected," Mari said. "I wonder how things are back on the mainland."

Come to think of it, what were things like back in Japan, anyway? Masashi had not thought too much about it, besides thinking about the places with which he was familiar as part of his daily life. In any case, there was nothing that he could do about it, so he could only hope that things were all right back in Japan. Then again, with what he had seen of Keiko in the motive video, he had a feeling that something must have happened to his home and his neighborhood.

"Hey, do you want to walk around the palace with me?" Masashi asked. "Sometimes, a walk's nice if you have others to walk with."

"Sounds to me you need my company more than I need yours," Mari remarked. "But sure, I'll walk with you. It's good to take a break indoors every now and then."

They headed over to the Egyptian palace and walked inside. In the lounge, indeed, as Faye had said, Abraham was sitting on one of the many golden chairs, looking at the fireplace. Not wanting to disturb his peace, they walked down to the third deck.

_Ah… It sure was fun last night…_ Masashi thought as he spotted by the room with the bumper cars inside. It was too bad that the night had been made to end on such a sour note, but that did not change the fact that the bumper car competition had been greatly entertaining. Maybe he could try to do something like that again in the future.

The two headed down to the fourth deck, but it was then that they heard a shrill scream.

"Wh-What the?!" Masashi blurted out before hearing footsteps rushing down the stairs.

"What was that sound?!" It was Murphy, whom they had spotted earlier at the arts and crafts room. "I thought I heard a woman screaming!"

"I think it came from the other side of the river..." Mari responded.

He saw two boats there, which meant that at least two people were now at the Memory Bank, and the woman's scream had come from there. He could also see from here that the door to the Memory Bank was wide open.

"No time to answer!" Murphy said. "We have to go check it out at once!"

Without thinking, the three got on one of the boats, and Murphy pressed the button to get it moving. Then the boat began to sail through the river, albeit ever so slowly, and Masashi could not very well sit down and relax. They must get there as quickly as he could, but there was nothing that they could do about the boat's speed and movement. After the boat turned such that it might park right by the platform, the three got off, and at that moment, someone came out of the Memory Bank.

"Thank goodness you're here, commoners!" It was Maiha, a hint of fear in her voice. "There's something that you must see right now!"

"Wh-What is it?" Masashi said, dread building up within him.

"Don't tell me it's what I think it is..." Murphy said with stern eyes.

Maiha bit her lip. "It's better that you see it with your own eyes. You'll understand why."

Then the four stepped into the Memory Bank, and at once, Masashi froze, his worst fears coming true.

_No… no way… Why…?_

There, on the floor, a calm, but lifeless expression on the face, lay Futaba, never to rise again.

"Ah… Ah… _Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Masashi shrieked.

There was blood from a wound on the back of her head, and yet, even if there were no blood, the stillness made it clear that there was no longer any life within her.

Just then, the dreadful chime rang through the room, coming from a speaker in the room.

"A body has been discovered!" Monokuma said. "Everyone, please gather at the Memory Bank!"

Once there was nothing but silence, Masashi stood there frozen, his eyes watering. Seeing this awful sight, he wondered how much his hope mattered if this was what it built up to.

* * *

**Hello, everyone! Sorry for taking longer than usual, but I've been a bit busy lately, so I hope I've not made you wait too long. Anyway, I've decided to start off the new year by killing off Futaba. It's a great shame, since Futaba's among the more likable characters to me, but for a few reasons, I've decided that she's the one to go. Interestingly, many of you guessed that she would be the victim, but after the last chapter (in which Masashi confronts Sorao about his lie), it appears that she dropped off some people's lists of likely victims, and instead, it was either Sorao, Faye, Sister Hikari, or Abraham that was this chapter's victim.**

**Anyway, which character do you think is the killer? It's not investigation time yet, but I'd still like to hear your thoughts and guesses.**


	21. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (7)

For a long while, Masashi only looked at the dead body on the floor. Though he had already accepted the fact that the killing game was likely to go on, deep down, he had hoped that they could all escape this awful situation. And yet, here lay the leader, slain by one of the fifteen whom she had sworn to protect.

_Why…? Why did this have to happen?_ Masashi thought as he wept. Knowing that Monokuma had driven Haruka to kill with the first motive, he could not deny the possibility that one of the others too had fallen for temptation. _Even so... __why?_

Mari looked down at the body, eyes having gone wide. Though her body had gone still for a few seconds, she had quickly recovered and soon knelt down as if about to conduct an examination. Meanwhile, Murphy shook his head as he looked down at the body. This time, he appeared less shocked than he had been when seeing Atsushi's body; at least he had already learned that the killing game was indeed real.

Eventually, Maiha tapped Masashi's shoulder. "Commoner, I know that this is a tragedy, but this is no time to weep. We must move at once."

"Move? What do you mean?" Masashi asked.

"She means that the others need to be able to come here," Murphy answered. "The only way to do so is by riding one of the boats through the river. Three of them are now on this side of the river, so it would be much easier for the others if we headed back to the other side."

"Oh… Oh, right," Masashi said, having forgotten about that for a short moment. He was surprised to see that Maiha had calmed down already. After all, it was her scream that alerted him and Murphy to her presence in the Memory Bank. But then again, a more level-headed person was what the group needed, now that the leader was dead, and they needed to go through the process of investigating and holding a class trial.

Masashi, Murphy, Mari, and Maiha then headed onto all three boats, Mari joining Masashi on his boat, and rode them to the other side of the river. Eventually, after a few minutes, the others came, most looking confused and panicking. Once they saw the remaining four, it did not take long to realize which one of them was the victim.

"No way in hell what you say is true!" Sorao said, setting a hand on his chest, his eyes begging them to tell him that this was all one bad joke. "Lady Inoshishi… Sh-She can't be… She can't be dead! There's no way I'll believe that!"

"If you refuse to believe it, then let us see the body," Haruyuki answered, who, on the other hand, seemed rather calm and collected.

The group then split off into groups, as each boat, having only two rows of seats, could hold at most four passengers. After they all sailed to the other side, they entered the Memory Bank, and the dreadful deed had been conformed to those who had been in denial.

"A-Ah… N-No… I can't believe it… but Futaba's gone! She's gone!" Faye said, trying to keep her composure.

Kumi shrieked and walked backwards, only to trip and fall on his back, tears welling in his eyes. "L-Lady Futaba… Sh-She's dead…? N-No… no, no, no, no, no, no, _no, no, no!_"

"Whoa… I didn't think it was one of the rich broads that'd go next," Sayua said, more disgusted than horrified.

"May she rest in peace…" Sister Hikari said, hanging down her head.

Red Mask said nothing, putting her hands in the pockets of her purple shirt and looking away as if trying to deny that this was even happening. Meanwhile, Arashi looked down at the body, weeping as he ground his teeth.

Sorao knelt by the body, tears leaving his eyes and falling onto the lady's right hand. "Lady Inoshishi… I… I truly thought… that we could have a future together… But… why? Why did it have to be taken away from us? Why… why… _why?_"

The musician kept weeping aloud as he kept his gaze at the hand. Eventually, however, Monokuma popped up, interrupting him in his mourning.

"Hey, there, everyone! Not so swell weather we have here, do we?" Monokuma said. "And on top of that, one of you guys is dead! What a shame!"

"'What a shame'? Is that all you have to say?" Haruyuki asked.

"Y-Yeah! Don't you feel sad at all?!" Arashi said, looking angrily at him with teary eyes.

"Sure, I do, buddy! I feel sad that we all have to do this early in the morning," Monokuma answered. "If you ask me, the perfect time to do a class trial is in the early afternoon. That way, we can all go out to a nice seafood restaurant afterwards!"

Mari sighed. "Leave it to you to get off topic. And besides, I don't like seafood very much."

"I will have no more of your rank hogwash," Maiha said boldly. "Simply give us the Monokuma File now."

Stopping his theatrics, Monokuma then handed each of them a black tablet. Most of the remaining students turned theirs on and read the contents of Monokuma File 2:

"_The victim is Futaba Inoshishi, the Ultimate Figure Skater. The body was discovered in the Memory Bank, and the victim was killed in that same place. The cause of death was a blow to the head with a blunt instrument. No other injuries have been found."_

Masashi looked askance at the file. For some reason, there was less written here than in Atsushi's file, in that the time of death was not mentioned at all. And what was up with the lack of clearness with respect to the murder weapon? Atsushi's file had mentioned that he had been killed with a kitchen knife, so was there a reason why it was made vague this time? Could it be that Monokuma expected them to do more of the investigation work as the killing game went on?

"Anyway, I'll leave it to you guys now!" Monokuma said. "Have fun investigating! I'll see you at the class trial!"

Monokuma then disappeared, leaving the fifteen speechless students here.

"Well, then, I guess we should get started already." It was Mari, who seemed none too frightened by the scene. "Standing here won't help us find out which of us killed Futaba."

"Indeed," Maiha said. "We must find the killer among us as soon as possible for our survival's sake."

"Yeah… None of us can deny that." Sister Hikari sighed. "Still, I'm shocked that one of us is now a killer! I thought that after Haruka's death, none of us would make the same mistake as she had!"

"In a way, you are right," Haruyuki said. "That is to say, the killer did not want to make her mistake of being caught."

"Hmph. We'll see about that," Abraham said.

Sorao sighed as he stood back up and wiped away his tears. "I… I think I need a moment to myself. Sorry, guys, but I don't think I'll be much help this time."

* * *

Like last time, most of the others left the Memory Bank to explore the other parts of the ship, the only ones remaining in this room being Masashi, Sorao, Mari, and Murphy, the last two of whom were to guard the crime scene. In the meantime, Sorao stood by a corner of the room, looking down at the floor as he kept weeping of his lover's death.

"Time to look at the body, I guess," Masashi said. Perhaps Futaba had left behind a few valuable clues that pointed toward her killer.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Monokuma File**

It felt a bit weird to see such a graceful and splendid lady lying dead on the floor like it, and so it felt even weirder to have to examine the body. But at this point, he had to do it if he wanted to uncover as much evidence as he could.

First things first, he looked at the wound on her head. It looked rather severe, showing that the killer had applied much force with the murder weapon, as one might expect. Blood had leaked from the wound, forming a small puddle. And judging by how frail she looked, Masashi doubted that she had a chance to fight back. Someone of her rank likely had never expected to be attacked at all and so had not thought too much about self-defense.

"But here's the most important question," Masashi said. "Where's the murder weapon?"

There was nothing like a weapon anywhere in the room, oddly enough. Could the murderer have taken it with them after the wicked deed had been done? But if that were the case, then for what reason had the killer done such a thing?

_Maybe looking around some more will help me figure out what it_ is, Masashi thought.

He began to look at the lady's corpse. There was something held in the left hand, and it seemed to be a piece of paper. Masashi slowly took it out and held it on the sides with both hands. The note said:

"_The deputy is hiding something important from you. Go to the Memory Bank tonight to find out what it is. The password is 'Magdalena Engracia Pinto'. But do not go there if you see any boats on the other side. It means that someone is there."_

"Wh-What the…?" Murphy said. "This note… It's…"

"Well, setting aside how the note's on her person," Mari said, "we can tell that the note was for her. After all, look at the password mentioned. I remember her mentioning a foreign name a while ago, so the name here's likely that same one."

Masashi widened his eyes a bit before sighing. "Yeah… It's the name of someone dear to her, to put it lightly. And more importantly… the part at the very end is a bit odd, isn't it? It's warning her not to go to the Memory Bank in case she sees any boats there. It's like it's concerned about her safety."

"If you think about it, it makes sense," Mari said. "Think about how we came here in the first place. The only way to come here is by boat, since Monokuma said a few days ago that swimming in the river was forbidden. So if anyone's at the Memory Bank, that person must have come here on one of the boats available, right?"

_Oh, yeah… That's right…_ Masashi thought, recalling the night when he had encountered Maiha. Apparently, she had seen his boat and could tell that he was at the Memory Bank.

"That's oddly thoughtful of the writer to tell her," Mari continued. "Are we really so sure that the writer's the killer?"

"Yeah, that's a good point…" Masashi said. Last time, Haruka had written Atsushi a note because she had needed him to be alone in the Haunted Woods ride, but this time, was it possible that someone other than the killer had written it?

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Futaba's Note - This note was found in Futaba's pocket, and of course, one cannot tell from the handwriting who the writer is.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: No Swimming Rule - It is forbidden to swim in the river.**

"By the way," Mari said, "do you know who knew about her darling's name?"

"Well, there should be one man who knows about it more than the rest of us," Masashi said. "Hey, Sorao!"

Once he beckoned Sorao to come and explained why he had called him, Sorao let out a great sigh as he crossed his arms.

"Sorry, man, but if you think you can tell which of us is the killer with that, you're out of luck," the musician answered. "Before the memory theft, Lady Inoshishi and I once talked about her dancer friend with most of the others, so essentially anyone could have heard the name."

"So it's pointless to try to figure out who the killer is based on who heard about the name…" Masashi heaved a sigh as well, wishing that it were that simple to root out the culprit with that alone.

Once Sorao headed back to his corner to contemplate whatever was in his mind, Masashi was about to put the note away, only to feel something weird on his fingers. He took a look at the back, only to start at the sight of blood.

"Wh-What the hell?!" Masashi said, startled to see its presence. Out of surprise, he dropped the note. "Wh-Why is there blood on the note?"

"Maybe it's a message written in blood on it," Mari said. "What does it say?"

Masashi looked at the floor for the note, only to gasp upon seeing that the note was in the puddle of blood from Futaba's wound. He quickly picked it up with both hands touching the sides, but it was too late: not only was most of it covered in blood, but he had also rubbed his hands on the sides, which caused the characters near the sides to be smudged with fresh blood. Thankfully, not all of it was lost, as the middle part of the note, covered in blood though it was, was still readable:

SU

YUKA

A character to the left of "SU" and one to the right thereof were, sadly enough, now unreadable, as were the character to the left of "YU" and the one to the right of "KA".

"Hey, look." Mari then pointed at Futaba's left hand, from which Masashi had taken the note. She directed his attention to the index finger, which was covered in blood. "Isn't it possible that Futaba wrote the message on the note after being attacked?"

"What, she wrote that?" Masashi said. "Come to think of it, the Monokuma File doesn't say whether she died instantly. I guess it's possible that she wrote this in her last moments…"

If that were the case, however, what did this message mean? Why would she write this of all things before her death?

_Hmm… I wonder…_ Masashi thought as he memorized the contents of the note.

"Aw, man..." Sorao sighed, having watched the scene with bemusement. "If Lady Inoshishi wrote that, then it means you erased part of her last words, dude!"

"Yeah, that could've been a very valuable clue," Mari said blankly.

"Way to go, Masashi," Murphy said, sounding rather disappointed.

"O-Oh... Well, I'm very sorry about that!" Masashi said upon seeing a bit of anger on the musician's face. "I'll try not to do that again, I promise!"

"Uh, maybe you shouldn't be the one handling the evidence, dude. Just saying..." Sorao replied as he looked back at him with unconvinced eyes.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Bloody Message - On the other side of the note in Futaba's left hand is a message written in blood. Unfortunately, Masashi unwittingly caused some of the characters to be unreadable, so what the original message was is now unknown. The remaining characters that could be read are "SU YUKA". It seems that Futaba wrote it in her last moments, given the blood on her left index finger.**

There was nothing else noteworthy from the body, so Masashi thought to look around the other parts of the Memory Bank. As it was a rather small room, every part of the room was visible to anyone just walking in. The main feature, of course, was the pods that held the students' memories. Masashi wanted to examine all the pods here, wondering whether any of them had been used, but the problem was that he could not access them all.

_Oh, wait… I should just ask him, then._

Masashi sighed before he called for Monokuma, and just like that, the captain appeared in a flash.

"You called?" Monokuma asked.

"Yeah, I was wondering something about these pods," Masashi answered. "Were any of them used last night?"

Monokuma chortled. "For your information, only the victim's pod was used last night. And to answer your other question, it's the only time that it has ever been accessed, besides, you know, the _unforgettable_ occasion we had the other day!"

"How do you define 'accessed'?" Mari asked, eyeing him curiously. "Do you mean simply opening the pod, or do you mean wearing the headgear inside and accessing its functions?"

"It's the latter! And the pod can be closed only if the headset is worn, just so you know!" Monokuma answered. "And speaking of that, it's all recorded in the History section of the pod."

"Huh? History section?" Murphy asked. "You mean, the pod records the interactions done inside it?"

Masashi was a bit surprised to hear that as well; even though he had already known about that from his one adventure with his memories, admittedly, he had forgotten about it until Monokuma had brought it up.

"Do you have a copy of her History section?" Masashi asked.

"What, you want to snoop into her private life and find out what she was doing? That's pretty creepy, if you ask me," Monokuma said. "But since you asked anyway, here it is! Brought to you by your local sponsors!"

Monokuma then took out a piece of paper that showed what had been done inside her pod. It looked unremarkable at first, as starting from 10:35 PM, Futaba had accessed the pod and had gone through her memories. But at the very end, it listed something unusual:

Day 5, 12:59 AM - Memory 7 abruptly ended.

Day 5, 1:00 AM - Pod exited

"What's up with the 'abruptly ended' part?" Murphy asked.

"Oh, you don't get it? I thought it was self explanatory," Monokuma replied. "If you press any two buttons on the right side of the headset, you can stop watching the memory you're currently on. You know, just in case it's really boring and whatnot, or just in case you hear something weird outside. These pods aren't soundproof, you know."

"More importantly, why did Futaba abruptly end that memory?" Masashi asked, who in truth had already known about that feature.

"Maybe she felt too tired to go on and so thought to stop," Mari suggested.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Memory Bank Pods - The pod's lid can only be shut if one wears the headset and accesses the program, and such an action is then recorded on the History section. Also, the pods are not soundproof.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Futaba's History - All the information recorded on the History section of Futaba's pod. The memories began to be watched at 10:35 PM, but the watching of Memory 7 was abruptly ended at 12:59 AM. The time of exiting the pod is recorded as 1:00 AM.**

**Other than on the day of the memory theft, this pod had not been accessed at all until last night. Also, Futaba's pod was the only pod used last night.**

"Then if this is all true," Masashi said, realizing what this information meant, "Futaba must have been alive around 1:00 AM! Maybe she was killed around that time!"

"Maybe," Mari said. "But… who's to say that it was _Futaba_ that used this pod?"

Masashi looked at her funnily. "Huh? What do you mean?"

"You seem to be under the assumption that the only one who could open a pod is its owner," she explained. "But Monokuma never mentioned that restriction, did he? All he said was that the pod's password must be typed in for opening the pod."

"Oh, yeah, that's a pretty good point," Masashi said. "Anyone who knew Futaba's password then could have been inside."

_But then again, just because there's that possibility,_ Masashi thought, _it doesn't necessarily mean it's true. Maybe if someone else got to the pod before she did, but was that possible last night?_

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Pod Access - All it takes to open a pod is type in the password, even if one is not the pod's owner.**

"Now, then, any more questions for me?" Monokuma asked.

"Could you tell us about the structure of the ventilation system in this room?" Mari asked. "After all, because of the rule forbidding us to crawl through the vents, we can't really figure it out for ourselves."

Monokuma giggled. "Really? How do you think it'll help you to know? After all, you know full well the rule about the vents!"

"Just to be safe, I think we should know."

"So that's the way you'll play, huh? All right, then. As your friendly neighborhood bear, I'll tell you all that you need to know!"

Apparently, the vent in the Memory Bank was linked to the vent in the first exhibit room. Both vents started off as five-foot straightforward horizontal passageways, and what connected them was a vertical passageway that was about twenty feet tall. As both horizontal passageways were parallel to each other, one could think of the whole system as a rectangle that lacked only one of its two longer sides.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Ventilation System - The Memory Bank and the first exhibit room are both connected by a vent. Each side of the vent starts as a five-foot horizontal passageway, and they are both connected at the end by a vertical passageway about twenty feet high.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Vent Rule - It is forbidden to crawl through the vents in the palace.**

"All right, that's enough. Thanks," Mari said before she looked elsewhere.

Monokuma growled a bit. "Sheesh! What a boring thank-you! Where's the praise for all the help that I've given you to solve this killing?"

"You know it's _your _fault that there's even a killing to solve, right?" Masashi said.

"Sure, sure, go ahead! Blame the bear for it as you guys usually do!" Monokuma replied as he lowered his head. "I feel so put down that I think I'll take my leave now…"

Keeping up the pathetic pretense, Monokuma then left, and no one here looked all the sorrier for his leaving.

Next, Masashi looked at the contents of her blue-and-white skater dress. He first found her Monopad, which, when turned on, showed the name "Futaba Inoshishi" on the screen before taking him to the main menu.

"Guess you can tell it's really hers with that," Murphy said.

"Yeah, I think that's a feature for all our Monopads," Masashi said. "It shows my name whenever I turn on my Monopad."

For some reason, he had a feeling that this one detail might be important later, so he made sure to take a note of it.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Monopad Name - Whenever one turns on a Monopad, the Monopad displays the owner's name.**

Masashi wondered whether she might have written anything down in the Notes section, but all she had written down was a list of things that had made up her daily schedule. There seemed to be nothing remarkable in it other than the fact that her schedule had been rather booked, many blocks of time dedicated to keeping Sorao company.

"Did you usually spend that much time with her?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, definitely..." Sorao answered before he sighed a dreary sigh. "Aw, man... You know, we had gotten closer and closer each day, man... If this hadn't happened, I'm sure our relationship would've blossomed. We would've seen _Battles Without Honor and Humanity_ together! We would've gotten married! And then we would've moved in to a great mansion by the sea!"

Sorao then sobbed a bit, wiping away his tears with his hands as he mourned his lost future. The death had clearly devastated him, but to hear what could have been was admittedly rather saddening, Masashi thought. He could hardly imagine how he would feel if he were to become a girl's lover, but were forced to be separated from her forever. Meanwhile, Mari stared blankly at Sorao, looking a bit bemused.

"Isn't _Battles Without Honor and Humanity_ a yakuza film, though?" she asked of all things. "Don't you think that's something she wouldn't particularly care for?

Sorao stopped sobbing and looked at her with a weak expression. "Well, I liked it, and I was hoping that she'd be a bit open-minded about her entertainment..."

"If you ask me, you would've better gone for something with less action in it," Murphy remarked. "Futaba seemed like the kind that'd like those slow-paced romance dramas."

"Or maybe instead of staying inside to watch a film, you could take the girl out for a nice stroll through the park, and you two could look up, gaze at the stars, and admire how beautiful the moonlight is..." Mari said, her voice sounding slightly excited as part of her face betokened her enjoyment of that scenario.

Sorao sighed as he shook his head, his eyes keeping their dreariness. "Aw, man... That actually sounds kind of nice! Damn it, why did the killer have to take that lovely future away from me?!"

_Now that I think about it, though, would the relationship have continued anyway? I mean, even without the whole memory theft thing, I'm not sure whether Futaba could've gotten permission from her father, however insistent she might be,_ Masashi thought as he put the Monopad back down. He chose to keep quiet about it, figuring that any suggestion that it might not have worked out would only upset Sorao now. _Anyway, I guess I should ask for any witness accounts. __Then again, if the crime took place at night, I'll be pretty lucky if there were even any witnesses at that time!_

He asked Mari, Sorao, and Murphy what they had been doing last night. The first two claimed that they had simply been asleep in their rooms.

"I felt a bit under the weather after dinner, you know, so I was by myself the whole time afterwards," Sorao said. "I know it sounds a bit suspicious, but trust me, man, I did nothing suspicious."

"And there's nothing that you happen to have forgotten, is there?" Masashi asked, recalling what had happened last time.

"Well, if there is, I've forgotten," Sorao answered with a smirk. "But seriously, you don't have to worry about me, dude. I wasn't pulling ropes into my room or anything."

_Yeah, let's hope that was actually the case,_ Masashi thought.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Sorao's Account - Sorao felt a bit sick after dinner at seven o'clock, after which point he rested alone in his room.**

"How about you, Murphy?" Masashi asked. "Were you up last night?"

"Oh, yes, actually, and I saw something very important, to boot!" Murphy answered, his expression a mix of carefulness and excitement. "See, I was actually on the fourth deck sometime after nighttime began. I was tired of doing my painting in the arts and crafts room, and I thought that a change in environment could help, so I moved my set to the fourth deck."

"Where, exactly?" Sorao asked.

"On the platform by the stairs," Murphy said. "I headed there around 9:00 PM and stayed there even after the nighttime announcement played. Once I felt tired enough, I decided to head back to my room. But that was then I saw Futaba herself!"

"Y-You did?!" Masashi said. "She walked down to this deck?"

"Yep. She said she wanted to look around a bit," Murphy answered. "I saw her board one of the four boats and sail to this side of the river. I left before actually seeing her go inside the Memory Bank, but given this is the only room she could access, I assume she came here afterwards."

"Ah, and there were four boats on your side of the river at the time?" Sorao asked, a finger set on his chin.

"Yeah, it was like that the whole time I was there," Murphy answered. "It only changed once Futaba decided to take a ride on one of them."

"Huh, really…" Masashi said. "And what time did you see her, roughly?"

Murphy scratched his chin. "There's a clock in the arts and crafts room, so once I met with Futaba and went to put away my set, I saw that it was about 10:30 PM."

"Well, assuming that no one else saw her…" Mari said. "That means that you're the last one to see her while she was alive."

_Yeah… And with no other witnesses, it's possible that Murphy's making this whole thing up._ Masashi sighed as he lowered his eyes. _Still, he may be telling the truth, so it's best to keep track of what he's said._

"Oh, and one more thing," Murphy added. "On my way back to my room afterwards, I actually stumbled upon a certain someone on the main deck of this very ship."

"You did? Who was it?" Masashi asked.

"Maiha, believe it or not," Murphy answered with an unamused expression. "She was walking toward the direction of the palace. Once she saw me, though, she instead asked me to accompany her back to our rooms."

"Whoa, really?" Sorao said. "That's pretty weird… If she was going in this direction, then it means she might have been planning to do something here, don't you think?"

Murphy snorted. "Whatever she may have been up to, all I can say for certain was that she saw me. If you have any doubt, go ahead and ask her yourself. She'll back me up."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Murphy's Account - Murphy headed down to the fourth deck around 9:00 PM and stayed there until around 10:30 PM. Afterwards, as he was heading back, he encountered Maiha, and they both headed back to their rooms.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Spotting Futaba - Murphy stumbled upon Futaba at the fourth deck just as he was about to leave around 10:30 PM. He saw her sail to the other side on one of the boats. At the time, all four boats had been on Murphy's side of the river.**

There was nothing else to investigate here, so Masashi decided to check out any other rooms, hoping that the killer might have left something important there. He headed back outside and found Arashi standing around on the dock. The pyrotechnician had been assigned to stand by the dock to make sure that no one should be stranded, in the unfortunate case that all the boats were on the other side. Thankfully, there was still one boat here.

"All right, hop on!" Arashi said once Masashi told him that he wanted to go to the other side. Once they got on, he started up the boat by pressing the power button. The boat came to life and began to move, the two beginning their journey to the other side. In the very beginning, the boat made a very quick movement as it turned toward the other side, but once the turning was done, it began to move at a snail's speed as usual.

_Why's this thing so slow?_ Masashi thought as they both sat back and relaxed. It was the only way to get from one side to the other, but it took a while to finish the journey. There was no option to change the boat's speed, so all he could do was sit back and wait.

Once they reached the other side, Arashi was about to go back to the Memory Bank side of the river, but Masashi stopped him.

"Hey, Arashi, I'd like you to get me something from the shop," Masashi said. "What I want is a stopwatch. I want to do an experiment with the boats."

"An experiment?" Arashi eyed him funnily before nodding. "Uh, all right, then!"

Arashi then rushed away to do his errand, and a few minutes later, he came back with a stopwatch and a few bandages, oddly enough.

"I got these just in case we might get hurt!" Arashi explained. "There are plenty of bandages, so I don't think taking a few was bad!"

_Safety first, I guess. _Masashi chuckled before he explained to Arashi what he wanted him to do. In this experiment, Arashi was to ride each boat from one side of the river to the other, since the point was to see whether the boats differed in any way. Masashi himself could not see how the boats might have played a role in the crime, but it did not hurt to gather information about it just in case.

The experiment ran slowly but smoothly. Minutes later, after Arashi was done testing each boat, the results were in: whichever boat he might take, and whichever side he sailed to, the boats were all of the same speed, and so it was clear that it took about a minute and a half to sail from one side to the other. Also, at the end of the ride, the boat automatically parked itself next to the dock, so right now, it was parallel to the platform.

_And one more thing..._ Masashi thought, recalling the boat's movements. _The boat makes a very quick turning movement at the beginning of the ride..._

He originally had had the idea that someone could have pressed the button and tried to jump back onto the platform, but when he asked Arashi about how feasible that was, he responded with much certainly that it was unlikely.

"You could make it with much practice, but still, I don't think anyone would ever try to do that!" Arashi answered. "If you failed, you'd fall into the river, and you'd have to face punishment from Monokuma!"

Yes, Arashi had a point here. The power button was in front of the front left seat, and even if one were to press it while leaning from the right side of the boat, the side next to the platform, because of the boat's quick turning movement, one could not feasibly jump back onto the platform without landing into the water. And the boat was only about six feet wide, as far as Masashi could tell, but it was still too wide to let anyone try to press the button while standing on the platform.

_Hmm, so I guess that possibility's off the table now..._ Masashi thought.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: River Boats - There are four boats available for going through the river. To get a boat to start moving, one must simply press the power button in front of the front left seat. The boat's movements and speed are all set, and it takes about a minute and a half to get from one side to the other. The boats appear to be the only way to go from one side of the river to the other.**

Once Arashi sailed back to the Memory Bank side of the river on one of the remaining boats, Masashi headed up to the third deck. There were three rooms on this deck: the bumper car room, the arts and crafts room, and the pharaoh's throne room. He saw Red Mask standing by herself in the hallway, looking a bit nervous as she glanced at nowhere in particular, her hands in the pockets of her purple shirt.

"Hey, Red Mask," Masashi asked, "have you found anything new so far?"

"Wh-What, me?" Red Mask chuckled, doing a poor job of hiding her fidgetiness. "N-Nope, sorry, I haven't! I mean, I'd love to help, really, but I don't think you guys need me—"

And it was then that something fell from her pockets. Masashi looked down at the objects and widened his eyes upon seeing it.

"Is that… a lockpick?" Masashi said.

"Eep!" Red Mask squealed, flinching. "U-Um, no… It's not a lockpick! It's, um, uh… a lockpick accessory!"

Masashi quickly snatched it before the thief could get it back. "It's definitely a lockpick, Red Mask. It's not so unreasonable to think someone like you has something like this."

"Gah… All right, all right, it's a lockpick!" Red Mask said, her right hand set on her mask as her tone became filled with unease. "I didn't want you guys to find out, since you might have confiscated my lockpicks! And why are you looking at me like that? Is having lockpicks a crime or something?"

"No, but it makes you look rather suspicious. With a lockpick, you can pick any door, take whatever's inside, and re-lock the door after you're done with your dirty business," Masashi replied. "In any case, how many lockpicks do you have?"

"Um, well… I have ten lockpicks in total," Red Mask said. "But I don't have them all on me… You see, I've actually lost two of them lately."

"_You have?_" Masashi could not believe that the phantom thief had been less mindful of her belongings. Then again, her personality suggested that she was a bit ditzy, however proficient she might be, so he could easily imagine her dropping something without knowing about it. "Hey, come to think of it… the other day, I saw you looking for something in the garden… Don't tell me that it was…"

Red Mask nervously giggled. "Y-Yeah… Guilty as charged. I was looking for one of my lockpicks back then. They must've fallen out of my pocket at some point in the last few days."

"Huh… Is that so," Masashi said as he made a note of it. "By the way, you haven't been using your lockpicks, right?"

"No, no, of course not! What kind of girl do you take me for?!" Red Mask replied.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Lockpicks - ****Red Mask has been hiding ten lockpicks from the group. However, she has lost two of them over the last few days.**

The only other noteworthy to ask her was what she had been doing last night. Unsurprisingly, Red Mask claimed that she was sound asleep in her room. Once done with her, Masashi then went into the pharaoh's throne room and found Maiha standing there by her lonesome.

_Come to think of it, she was the first one to have discovered the body, wasn't it?_ Masashi thought. _Maybe she saw something that could be important._

"Hey, Maiha," Masashi said. "What were you doing before you found the body?"

Maiha eyed him with some annoyance. "For your information, commoner, I was only going on a walk around the palace. When I headed down to the fourth deck, I saw a lone boat on the other side."

"And you grew curious and headed to the Memory Bank," Masashi finished for her.

"Exactly. Much like how that one night went," Maiha said with a sneer. "Oh, yes, I still remember. How could I forget such a singular occasion?"

"Yeah, it was one heck of an encounter," Masashi said, wondering what she was thinking. She had apparently not told anyone about it yet, but he still had a feeling that she was up to something. "Anyway, what were you doing last night?"

"Nothing that warrants suspicion, commoner," Maiha answered. "After nighttime began, I headed to the kitchen to get something to drink. Once I sat down at a table in the dining room to enjoy my drink, I saw Futaba walking by."

"Wait, you saw her?"

"Indeed. It was around 10:25 PM, and she was heading over to the main deck," Maiha said. "All she did when she saw me was bid me good evening."

"And was that all?"

"Well, I suppose I should be greatly remiss if I failed to mention that I happened to stumble upon the Irishman not long after," Maiha said. "I was about to go on a walk in the palace when I happened to bump into him. His sudden appearance shocked me so much that I thought it to be a sign that I ought to head to bed instead."

_Huh, that matches up with Murphy's account…_ Masashi thought. _So Murphy and Maiha both saw Futaba separately at a certain time period last night. Even if one of them is guilty and lied to me about it, the other's account then has to be true and proves when Futaba was still alive, so that's good._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Maiha's Account - Maiha was enjoying a drink in the dining room after nighttime began. After she was done, she was about to take a walk around the palace when she stumbled upon Murphy, after which she changed her mind, and they both headed back to their rooms. **

**Updated Truth Bullet: Spotting Futaba - Maiha saw Futaba going to the main deck around 10:25 PM. Afterwards, around 10:30 PM, Murphy happened to encounter Futaba at the palace's fourth deck. He saw her sail to the Memory Bank on one of the boats. At the time, before Futaba's arrival, all four boats had been on Murphy's side of the river.**

As Maiha walked away, however, Masashi heard something falling from the pockets of her black dress. Masashi looked at the fallen item, and at once his sight was fixated on it, for it was none other than a lockpick.

"Why do you have that on you?" Masashi asked as Maiha picked it up. It definitely looked like the lockpick that Red Mask had on her, so it must've been one of the two lost lockpicks.

Maiha scoffed. "I found it lying on the floor a few days ago and thought it unusual. Since then, I have kept it on my person, if there should be any emergency in which it may prove useful."

"And why didn't you tell us that you had that?"

Maiha looked at him with a miffed expression. "It does not concern you at all, commoner. From what I could tell, it is but an ordinary lockpick."

"Still…"

"Always with that expression of yours! Do you think that I have planned to do some great misdeed therewith?"

"Well, no…" Masashi replied, though he had his doubts about her given how suspicious she had been this whole time.

"Then there is no reason to be concerned. Now begone, commoner."

"But—"

"_Begone!_" She then pointed at the door, her expression full of annoyance. "I wish to be alone right now, and your presence I find to be distracting."

_Sheesh! If you're that insistent about it, I'll gladly leave you be_, Masashi thought, wondering that she could be ever so irksome at a time like this. _At least that's one mystery solved, though._

**Updated Truth Bullet: ****Lockpicks - ****Red Mask has been hiding ten lockpicks from the group. However, she has lost two of them over the last few days. ****One of them happened to be found by Maiha.**

Masashi left the throne room and saw that Red Mask had already left. He had planned on telling her about the lockpick, but he figured that it was likely best to save the discussion for the class trial, and besides, he still needed to find out what had happened to the other lockpick. He headed into the bumper car room, where Sister Hikari, Kumi, Sayua, and Tanjiro were standing. The latter two were looking around at the bumper cars, whereas the former two stood not too far from the door.

"S-Sir Masashi!" Kumi said. "Have you found the evil warlock that killed Lady Futaba with his black magic?!"

"Ah, no… sorry," Masashi said, already having figured out how to deal with the storyteller at a time like this. "But with your help, I'm sure we'll be able to find him."

"I-I'll try to help the best that I can!" Kumi said, trying to muster some pluck in his voice, though his eyes still showed great unease. "I don't want to let the evil warlock hurt anyone else! First Sir Teddybane… Then Lady Futaba… He mustn't get away with this!"

"Wait, Sir Teddybane?" Masashi said, raising his brow. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, about that…" Sister Hikari sighed. "Sir Teddybear's gone missing."

Kumi sniffed as tears began to leave his eyes. "Wh-Where is he?! When I woke up this morning, he was nowhere to be found!"

"Yes, Kumi panicked as if it were the end of the world," Sister Hikari said. "It took quite a while to calm him down. Right now, we're trying to look for the lost teddy bear."

"Huh… That's pretty weird," Masashi remarked, wondering at the whole story. "When I was with Kumi last night, he definitely still had his teddy bear."

"Th-Then it must've been stolen!" Kumi said as a little anger entered his voice. "The evil warlock must've gone into my room and taken Sir Teddybane with him!"

"But at that time, it was Sister Hikari that had the key to your room," Masashi pointed out. "Are you saying that she stole it then?"

Kumi let out a small gasp as he shrank back a little and nervously eyed the good nun. "N-No… S-Sister Hikari, I don't mean to accuse you at all! I know for sure that you would never do such a thing!"

"Oh, I'm glad to hear that from you!" Sister Hikari said, keeping up her bright smile and showing no displeasure at all. "But I'm still confused as to how the thief stole Sir Teddybane. After all, I'm rather sure that the locks of our doors cannot be picked."

_Well, the teddy bear couldn't have been stolen while I was with him,_ Masashi thought, _and it most likely wasn't stolen after Sister Hikari took his key. So when did the thief have the opportunity to take—_

Masashi gasped, realizing with more frustration than dread at the culprit's identity. Thinking back to Kumi's incident last night, he remembered that there had been one particular moment when he had not been with Kumi.

* * *

_"Hey, don't you think that you should tell that Sister Hikari woman about this?" Sayua said, sounding unusually thoughtful about this. Maybe a few seconds of helping him had helped her realize the gravity of the situation._

_"Yeah, good point," Masashi said. Kumi might be doing better now, but it would be untruthful of him if he were to keep this hidden from her._

_"Then go look for her! She should still be in the dining room," Sayua said. "Don't worry, I'll watch over him. I'll make sure that nothing bad happens to him."_

_"Oh, thank you! I'll be right back!" Masashi was glad that Sayua for once was not trying to back out of this. Without wasting any more time, Masashi rushed out of the door, leaving her with him in his room._

* * *

"Hey, Sayua!" Masashi cried out, beckoning her to come here. "Could I ask you something?"

"Huh? What is it?" the cheerleader asked, accompanied by Tanjiro.

Masashi sighed before looking at her warily. "Sayua, did you take Kumi's teddy bear when I was gone?"

Instead of protesting against the charge, Sayua cracked a little smile. "What if I did? It's not against the rules here, is it?"

"Y-You… You're the one that took Sir Teddybane?" Kumi said, trembling as he looked up at her.

"Yes, that's right, and we're really sorry about it!" Tanjiro said, the uneasiness on his face growing. It seemed that he had already known about Sayua's theft and had something to do with it later.

"B-But... But why did you take him in the first place?!" Kumi cried out.

Tanjiro sighed as he thought for a few seconds. "If I remember right, Sayua said that it was… some kind of payback?"

Sayua waved her hand flippantly. "That's right! He kept pissing me off with his fantasy shtick, which got really old and annoying. So I thought as payback, it'd be right to take his teddy bear and have him piss his pants later once he saw it was missing. So during the idiot's little incident, while Masashi was out looking for the nun, I took the teddy bear out from his satchel, put it in my room, and rushed back to his room as if nothing had happened."

"Th-_That's_ your reason for stealing his teddy bear?" Masashi said, Kumi and Sister Hikari eyeing her with shock and awe.

"Well… I do agree that he's a bit irritating with his behavior and obsession with fantasy," Tanjiro said, looking hesitantly at her. "But I definitely would not have approved of it if I'd been there."

"H-How… _How could you do such an awful thing?!_" Kumi exclaimed, looking a bit angry at her and holding his teddy bear defensively as if fearing that she might take him again. "I… I was so scared and confused when I found out Sir Teddybane was missing! E-Even for a troll like you, what you did was bad!"

"Yes, I agree with Kumi here! What you did was utterly shameful and small-minded," Sister Hikari said sternly. "You should be grateful that we can still resolve this incident without any permanent loss."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. No one got hurt in the end, anyway, so I don't see why you have to keep complaining about it," Sayua said, paying her little heed.

"That's… not exactly the problem," Tanjiro pointed out.

"That's because there isn't a problem!" Sayua retorted to her dreary secretary. "Look, buddy, you need to look at things from _my _perspective. If you were in my shoes, you'd do exactly the same thing to make that idiot stop messing around with you. I mean, even you admit that he's pretty fucking annoying, so come on, you have to agree that he had it coming to him!"

_Ah, Team Tomi's inner workings, I see,_ Masashi thought as he watched the two bicker for a bit, though Sayua's forcefulness let her have her way around with the meek writer. It was amazing that Tanjiro had managed to endure being with her.

"So what happened to Sir Teddybane?" Masashi asked.

Tanjiro sighed. "That's… actually kind of a long story that unfortunately involved me."

"Yeah, and I'll be the one to tell it!" Sayua said as she raised her index finger. "You see, after you guys were done tending to the idiot, I headed back to my room. My first plan was to force Kumi to join me in exchange for getting his stupid teddy bear back. But after I tried for a few hours to go to sleep, I realized that it was probably a bad idea to try to do that. After all, the brat could then whine to the nun and cause me even more trouble, so I gave up on that idea and thought about something else instead."

_Oh... And here I was, thinking that you'd realized what you had done was wrong, _Masashi thought as he sighed.

"I still had a teddy bear in my disposal, and I figured before it went back to its dumbass owner, I could at least have a bit of fun with it," Sayua continued. "So I had the idea of hiding it somewhere and forcing Kumi to look for it later."

"And so…?" Masashi said.

"Well, what do you think? I headed out of my room and thought to put it somewhere in this palace!" Sayua said. "I, of course, asked Tanjiro to come with me."

"It's more that she knocked on my door several times, woke me up from my slumber, and forced me to come with her…" Tanjiro clarified, Masashi imagining that he had had that same look of exasperation as he did right now. "I tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn't budge, and I didn't want to cause any more trouble at that time of night, so I thought it best to do what she said."

_The greater question is why she even needed you if all she wanted was to hide the teddy bear_, Masashi thought. It was not as if there had been any obstacles in the way; the closest thing to one was the storm, and even then, it was only lightning, thunder, and strong winds.

"So what happened next?" Sister Hikari asked, Kumi eyeing the cheerleader uneasily as he waited for the desired answer to the question of his teddy bear's whereabouts.

"Well, in the end, after looking around, we decided to hide the teddy bear in the arts and crafts room," Tanjiro answered. "Come to think of it… at that moment, we saw something very interesting."

"Interesting?" Masashi said, his interest piqued.

"Yep! Just as we were about to leave the room," Sayua said, "we saw someone rushing through the hallway and heading up the stairs! It was none other than that phantom thief chick!"

Masashi widened his eyes. "Wait, you saw _her?_ Red Mask? At that time and place?"

"Yeah! My two eyes here don't lie, you know!" Sayua said. "I'm sure it was her! The clothing that that person wore matched hers!"

"Th-That's rather strange, to say the least!" Sister Hikari said. "At what time did you see her?"

Tanjiro nodded. "Thankfully, there's a clock in the arts and crafts room, so we know for sure that it was _exactly_ 1:00 AM when we saw her. I don't think she spotted us, since she was not too far from the stairs when we saw her."

"So once we sensed she was gone, we skedaddled and went back to our rooms!" Sayua finished.

_Amazing... So this ridiculous tale had a good ending after all..._ Masashi thought, as he now had a useful witness account with a reliable record of the time. That the two had happened to be there at the right time seemed like nothing short of luck. _And moreover…_ _I wonder why Red Mask was on this ship at that time..._

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Sayua's Account - At exactly 1:00 AM, while in the arts and crafts room, Sayua and Tanjiro saw Red Mask running through the third deck's hallway and going up the stairs.**

"I-Is Sir Teddybane still in that room?!" Kumi asked frantically.

"Uh, yes, it should still be there..." Tanjiro answered.

Upon hearing his answer, Kumi told Sister Hikari to follow him as he rushed over to the room at once. The good nun followed after him, begging him to slow down.

"Come on, let's not dilly-dally anymore. We'll get to the bottom of this case and find the one that killed the rich broad!" Sayua declared as she headed for the entrance.

"Uh, yes, of course…" Tanjiro sighed as he drearily followed after her. Masashi wanted to confront Sayua about her misdeeds a bit more, but he had the investigation to tend to. The worsening relations between Kumi and Team Tomi were a problem for another day.

After looking around the bumper car room and finding nothing of note, Masashi headed out and saw that Haruyuki now stood outside the arts and crafts room. He could hear chatter coming from inside; it seemed that Kumi and Sister Hikari were now searching thoroughly for the storyteller's stolen companion.

"I suppose you wonder what I was up last night," Haruyuki said. "I can assure you that I was simply sleeping in my room. Before then, I was with you guys when you played your game on the bumper cars."

"You know, I still think you should've joined us," Masashi replied, recalling that night. "It was a lot of fun! I think you would've enjoyed it!"

Haruyuki let out a wry chuckle. "But had I not stayed out of the scene, how would I have observed it and all its interesting details? My interference would've made things far less interesting."

"_Interference"... I wonder why he thinks like that_, Masashi thought. _Is there any reason why he insists on separating himself from everyone else?_

"Anyway, as the others can attest, the game lasted from about 8:20 PM to 9:30 PM," Haruyuki added. "If Futaba were killed in that time interval, then we who were in the bumper car room have an alibi. If not, then any of us could've killed her afterwards, I'm afraid."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Bumper Car Games - Masashi, Mari, Kumi, Tanjiro, Sayua, and Arashi were all in the bumper car room from 8:20 PM to 9:30 PM. Haruyuki was there the whole time as well, but not once did he participate in the game.**

"By the way," Haruyuki said as he went through the pockets of his black coat, "I have something that ought to interest you greatly."

He took the item out, and indeed, it piqued his interest greatly, for it was none other than a lockpick.

"I found it two days ago on the kitchen floor," the art critic explained. "Since then, I have hung onto it."

"Uh huh…" Masashi said, once again amazed that such a thing had fallen into his hands. "And I take it you felt no need to tell the rest of us about it."

Haruyuki chuckled as he put the lockpick away. "I see that you have begun to understand me."

Masashi sighed as he took note of the lockpick. On one hand, it was good that Haruyuki had been forthcoming about the fact that he had it, but on the other hand, the fact that he had revealed it only now caused Masashi to become a bit wary of him. It did not help that the man overall came off as somewhat creepy, even if he was cooperative and willing to help in the investigation. But was Haruyuki truly the kind of man to kill someone, though? Sure, he was creepy, but so far, Haruyuki had done nothing but make somewhat interesting observations, and he had proven to be of some help in the last investigation. On the whole, he seemed like someone that would rather stay out of current affairs if he could, which was somewhat a waste of his intelligence.

_I guess it's a waste of time to determine whether he's the killer by thinking about that, _Masashi thought. This was a killing game; he had learned the hard way that anyone, even the softest and kindest person of them all, could very well resort to murder if the temptation to do so were great enough. Haruyuki could very well be doing a good job hiding his actual feelings, but it was better to determine whether that was true through the evidence. _At least the whole mystery of the missing two lockpicks is now solved..._

**Updated Truth Bullet: ****Lockpicks - Red Mask has been hiding ten lockpicks from the group. However, she has lost two of them over the last few days. ****Maiha and Haruyuki found them at some point, and they both had the lockpicks last night.**

Seeing nothing else to talk about with the man, Masashi left and headed into the arts and crafts room. The room was pretty much an utter mess, as cans of paint were lying around carelessly, and papers and other art supplies were strewn throughout the floor as if a storm had come through the room. But the people here certainly looked more joyful than any victim of a storm, as Kumi was now holding tightly onto his teddy bear.

"Oh, Sir Teddybane! I'm so glad you're not hurt!" Kumi said as he hugged it, his eyes full of tears. "You have no idea how worried I was for you! Never again will I let you be kidnapped and placed in a paint can!"

_Ah, that's cute… He worried about his teddy bear as if it were a friend of his,_ Masashi thought as he smiled at such a sight.

As he left Kumi be in his reunion with his teddy bear, Masashi headed over to Sister Hikari, who was in the middle of cleanup. He asked her whether she had found anything odd while going through this room.

"Actually, there is _one_ thing," Sister Hikari answered as she bade him look at a few containers of thread. She pointed at a can of silver thread, which was already open. "I've noticed that this can is missing a significant amount of thread."

"Really? When did it go missing?"

"Well, I came here yesterday to get some thread for my knitting," Sister Hikari said, "and I noticed that the silver thread had already gone missing. It was still there when I did some knitting before Monokuma gave that awful motive, so someone must have taken it."

"Hmm… Maybe that person simply took it to do some knitting, like you," Masashi suggested.

"It's certainly possible, and I thought the same thing," Sister Hikari replied before she looked more apprehensive. "Still, given our current circumstances, perhaps someone took it for more… nefarious purposes."

"Well, is there anything special about the silver thread?"

Sister Hikari looked at the container of silver thread. "It says that this kind of thread is special in that it's very strong and durable. Because of that, the price is rather dear."

"Yeah, with that description, I can see how useful that can be."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Silver Thread - A significant amount of silver thread is missing from one of the cans in the arts and crafts room. The thread is apparently very strong and durable.**

Seeing nothing else to check here, Masashi left the room, headed up to the second deck, and saw that the door to the first exhibit room was open. He headed inside and found Faye and Abraham standing around, the room being lit by a small glass orb on a stand on each corner. He also noticed that there was a vent near the door to the second exhibit room; it must be connected to the vent in the Memory Bank, as he had heard earlier.

"Need any help with anything?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, well, there are a few things, truly," Faye said, eyeing him uneasily. "For one, we've been thinking about the murder weapon."

"The Monokuma File says that it's only a blunt instrument," Abraham said before he sighed. "How fucking tiresome it is that the bear doesn't tell us that simple fact."

"And since all the blunt tools we've found outside the second exhibit room are too unwieldy to use," Faye said, "it stands to reason that it must have come from that room."

The three then headed over to the second exhibit room. Masashi had not been here since he had first walked around the ship as part of the group's first investigation thereof. In this room lay such sundry things as ropes, nets, knives, gallons of waters, and cans of food. What caught his eye, however, was a metal bat lying on the floor, for there was a slight amount of blood on it.

"Wh-What the…?" Masashi said as he felt it and saw that it had dried a long time ago. "Why is there blood on this thing?"

"Oh, that? We were wondering about that ourselves when we saw it this morning," Faye said. "We were planning on telling Futaba about it later, but, well… you know…"

Masashi lifted it and found it rather easy to wield, though its great size would hinder him if he were to walk stealthily around with it.

"It seems pretty clear that it's the murder weapon," Faye said as she eyed the weapon with unease. "Guess that's one mystery solved."

_I wonder why the killer returned the weapon here, though…_ Masashi thought. _Maybe the killer felt a need not to leave it behind in the crime scene?_

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Metal Bat - A metal bat was found in the second exhibit room during the investigation. It is hard, sturdy, and easy to use, but its size makes it impossible to hide on one's person. There is a slight amount of blood on it.**

Masashi looked around and saw that the second exhibit room had glowing orbs to light up the room as well. He picked up one of them and saw that there was a small square slot on the orb. Opening it, he saw that the inside of the orb contained some machinery, and what he could access were a few buttons. Pressing one of the buttons made the orb play music, much to his surprise.

"Wh-What the heck…?" Masashi said as he pressed another button, which made the music stop.

"Oh, I guess you don't know this, but the glowing orbs here also have a music player function. Monokuma told me and Abraham that it's for livening up the room, but personally, I find it pretty weird," Faye answered. "I mean, it even has this one function. Here, look."

Faye told Masashi to turn on the music again. Once he did, she then told Abraham to step out of the room and then come back in.

"Why the fuck should I?" Abraham said, giving her the evil eye as he crossed his arms. "It's bad enough that you fucking forced me to tag along with you during this investigation, so can't I have a moment to myself?"

Faye sighed as she frowned a bit. "I'd prefer that you make this whole process easier for us by cooperating. It takes only a few seconds, and surely a brute like you can understand that."

"_Brute?_"

Abraham looked as if about to argue against her even more, but at the last second, he relented and so did as she had told him to do, apparently sensing that it was a waste of time to bicker with her. When he left the room, the music from the orb, surprisingly enough, changed to another piece, and when he came back in, it changed yet again.

"You see now? The light orb apparently also detects how many people are in a room," Faye explained. "So it can change music if it senses that someone's left the room, for instance."

"That's… pretty weird," Masashi commented. "I guess it can help make the room feel different every time someone walks in, but it could also feel a bit jarring, if you ask me."

"Apparently, they were originally used for another part of the amusement park," Faye answered. "For whatever reason, though, the orbs were moved here and given a new purpose as lights. I guess they didn't feel the need to remove the music function, though."

Masashi raised the orb, continuing to look at it some more, only to have it slip his hands and begin its fall to the floor. Luckily, however, Abraham caught it before it could hit the floor.

"Be careful, you goddamn klutz!" Abraham said as he set the orb back on its stand. "The thing might break if you toyed around with it carelessly."

"Does it really break that easily?" Masashi asked.

"From the height you were holding that thing, it wouldn't break. It's surprisingly durable," Abraham answered. "But I heard from Monokuma that if it's dropped from great heights, it's very likely some damage will be caused."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Light Orb - Each exhibit room has four light orbs (meaning that there are eight light orbs in total), and besides the lighting they can provide, they also have the function of playing music and having the music change if someone leaves or enters the room. The light orbs are rather durable, but if dropped from great heights, they are very likely to suffer some damage.**

"So what were you two doing last night?" Masashi asked. Because Faye had the key to the first exhibit room, and Abraham the key to the second exhibit room, they had some connection to this room, from which the murder weapon must have been taken.

Abraham sneered. "What I did should be none of your fucking business, but if you must know, I was in my room the whole time after the nightly inspection."

"Nightly inspection?" Masashi said.

"Ever since Monokuma gave out the motive, Futaba had been making us two check this room every night to make sure that nothing had been taken here," Faye answered. "Last night, we did the nightly inspection at 7 PM, which was earlier than usual, since I felt a bit sleepy and wanted to finish it early."

"And did you guys see anything odd?"

"Nope. Not a thing. Everything was where it should be, and we made sure to turn off all the light orbs before leaving, since Futaba said it'd be a waste of energy to keep them on," Faye said.

"Why did you guys even have to turn them all on, anyway?" Masashi asked.

"Futaba was pretty careful and wanted to make sure that there was nothing suspicious about them, so she had us check to see whether they worked each time," Faye said before glancing at her partner. "But one funny thing happened. After I locked the door to the first exhibit room, Abraham said he had forgotten something inside."

"It was one of the pens that I usually hold on my belt," Abraham answered, eyeing the pastry cook with unfriendliness as well. "It must've fallen off during the inspection. Once I had her unlock the door, I headed back inside by myself and took about three minutes to find it."

"And you were standing in the hallway outside the exhibit rooms the whole time, Faye?" Masashi asked.

"Yep. He insisted that I stay outside, and I was perfectly fine with it," Faye said. "After all, it was his pen, so it was hardly any of my business. And I knew that he wouldn't try to smuggle anything out of the room, just in case he had lied about the pen."

"Huh? How do you know that for certain?"

Faye smirked as she took out a small metallic device that looked a bit like a magnifying glass. "This here is a metal detector, which I got a few days ago. Since all the items that he could try to hide in his person are made of metal, the detector would've alerted me if he had tried."

"But as it turns out, once I came back out with my pen, and she used that thing on me," Abraham said with a smirk, "it turned out that all that I had on me were my Monopad and the items on my belt, which most certainly had not come from the room."

"I see…" Masashi said as he made a note of the two inspectors' activities.

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Nightly Inspection - Around 7 PM, Abraham and Faye did their nightly inspection of the second exhibit room and found nothing out of the ordinary. After they left the exhibit rooms, Abraham had Faye unlock the door, claiming that he had left a pen inside. While Abraham was inside the exhibit rooms, Faye stood outside in the hallway for about five minutes. After Abraham came out of the exhibit rooms, Faye used her metal detector on him and found nothing suspicious on his person.**

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Metal Detector - Faye carries around a small metal detector on her person.**

"But that's not all," Abraham then added. "Around 6:30 this morning, I woke up and headed over to the dining room, where the thirty cans of food and ten gallons of water had been transported by Monokuma. It was part of the rations that Futaba had asked for."

Faye scratched her cheek. "Well, I woke up a bit later than Abraham. By the time I was ready, he had already gone there and filled in his basket with half the given cans. Each of us was supposed to carry fifteen cans."

Masashi remembered that before the body discovery, Faye had complained about Abraham's behavior, so this must have been the occasion that she had been talking about.

"Anyway, after I filled in my basket with the remaining cans, we came here to move the rations as we had the morning before," Faye continued. "After I unlocked the door to the first exhibit room, for about a minute, I was busy turning on the light orbs in that room, while Abraham had gone ahead and turned the lights on in this room. But once I was done and came here, he had already turned on all the orbs in his room and had unpacked his basket of cans."

"What can I say? I'm a quick worker, unlike my partner here," Abraham said snidely.

Faye frowned a little as she continued. "Well, it was after his unpacking that he'd noticed something a bit unusual."

Abraham pointed at a certain corner in which there were six columns of canned food. Not all the columns were of the same height, however; one column was made up of five cans, but a few others were made up of two or three instead.

"Ordinarily, each column is supposed to be of five cans," Faye said. "But for some reason, exactly ten cans are missing now. And I even searched Abraham with the metal detector just in case he was trying something funny, but nothing weird popped up."

"Huh, really?" Masashi said as he looked at the cans. They were all somewhat small, but carrying even a few of them would be tough without something to hold them in. "How were they stolen from here, when all the doors were locked?"

"That's the great mystery," Faye replied. "Those columns of cans are made of the cans that we brought here yesterday morning, actually. The ones we brought this morning are right there."

She then pointed at another corner of the room, and in that corner were also six columns of cans, but each of them was made up of exactly five.

_How were those cans taken out of this room?_ Masashi thought, also wondering how it might be related to the case. Perhaps it was connected to how the killer had somehow taken the murder weapon out of this room, even though both doors had already been locked. Maybe the same way to smuggle out the weapon had been used to smuggle out the cans, but he could not see why the killer, if it were the same person as the thief, would have thought to steal the cans.

"By the way, what kind of baskets did you guys use to transport the cans of food?" Masashi asked.

"Ordinary ones with lids on them. The baskets we have can barely hold fifteen cans, so the lids make sure none of the cans can fall off," Abraham answered.

"And did you guys bring the gallons of water here afterwards?"

"Yep. After we were done putting the cans in this room," Faye answered. "It was pretty annoying, tiresome, and laborious, since we could move only four gallons every time. But in the end, we got the job done."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Morning Duty - Abraham and Faye came to the exhibit rooms around 7 AM, each holding a basket of fifteen cans of food. For about a minute, Faye was occupied with turning on the first exhibit room's light orbs, while Abraham had gone to the second exhibit room and turned on the light orbs there. After he had lit up the room and unpacked his basket, however, he noticed that there were ten cans missing from the pile of yesterday's columns of canned food.**

"And is the door the only way to get to this room?" Masashi asked.

Abraham scoffed. "What do you think, maggot? Do you see any other fucking ways? And I'm the only one with the key to this room."

"But since I have the key to the first exhibit room, it should have been impossible for him to come in last night without me," Faye said with a bit of unease. "The same goes for me. I couldn't have gone into the second exhibit room and gotten the weapon out, since I didn't have the key to this room. That was the whole point behind giving me and Abraham separate keys, after all!"

"So there's no reason to suspect either me or Faye," Abraham concluded.

_Hmm… They both have a point here…_ Masashi thought, feeling somewhat keen to eliminate them from his list of suspects. If one wanted to go to the second exhibit room, one would have to go through the first exhibit room, and since both keys were in different hands, in theory, neither of them should have been able to access the weapon. _Still, could there have been some way to bypass the locks?_

Masashi decided that he ought to investigate elsewhere, seeing nothing else of note in the exhibit rooms. Just as he left the first exhibit room, however, he nearly bumped into someone walking through the hall. It was none other than Mari, who looked none too fazed by the incident.

"Hey, Mari, what are you doing here?" Masashi asked, slightly befuddled to see her here. "I thought you were guarding the crime scene."

"Oh, I was, but I wanted to look around more, so I had Arashi agree to look at it instead," Mari replied. "Sorao's now the one in charge of transporting people back and forth."

"Ah, I see..." Masashi, from what he could tell, figured that Mari was not the kind of girl who would like to stay in a room for too long, having noticed how she liked to move about. "Well, since you're here, want to join me?"

Mari thought for a few seconds. "Sure, why not? I don't think there's much time left, though..."

"Oh, that's no problem! I think I've already found a goodly amount of clues," Masashi answered. "Maybe I can tell you later what I've found, and you can figure something out from it."

It was then that Masashi noticed Hikari standing by the door to the lounge. Like last time, she seemed to be doing nothing in particular.

"Wh-What do you want?" Hikari said, giving them both the evil eye. "I-If you think I-I did it, y-you should think twice. A-After all, I have no r-reason to k-kill Futaba."

"Really?" Masashi said.

"D-Duh. I-It was the motive that p-pushed the killer into k-killing her, o-obviously," Hikari replied. "I-I'm not really interested in g-getting my memories back… I'm all right w-with how things are now. S-So clearly the o-ones you should s-suspect are the ones who stand to b-benefit the most from it."

"Hmm… I see…" Mari said. "Well, I see where you're coming from. It's a pretty interesting line of thinking, don't you think, Masashi?"

_Sure, but if you ask me, that'd make things too easy, don't you think?_ Masashi thought. On one hand, Hikari had a point about which of the group would have been most tempted to kill Futaba, but on the other hand, the killer likely had already taken that into account and so might have pretended to be little affected by the motive. "Anyway, last night, what were you doing?"

"Wh-What else? I-I was sleeping," Hikari answered. "I-I can't really help you there… B-But I remember seeing something w-weird."

"Hmm? 'Weird'?" Masashi said. "What is it?"

"W-Well… I-I'm not sure h-how important it is…" Hikari replied. "I remember that a few days ago, before dinner… I-I saw Futaba h-handing that stupid th-thief her Monopad."

"What? Red Mask?" Masashi said. "Why would Futaba have her Monopad?"

"F-From what I could t-tell, th-the thief had somehow lost it a few hours ago," Hikari said. "S-So Futaba looked around and found it."

"Well… That's kind of interesting, but that's not what I'd exactly call weird," Mari remarked, Masashi thinking it more to be evidence that Red Mask was somewhat careless with her belongings. Given the thief's overall personality, he was not too surprised to hear that she had somehow lost her Monopad.

"Y-Yeah, but…" Hikari grimaced. "As dinner started, I-I saw it… a g-great look of anxiety on R-Red Mask's face… Sh-She didn't look h-happy at all that she had it back."

"Huh… That _is_ weird," Masashi said. He did not remember seeing such a thing, but then again, he had hardly ever paid attention to Futaba before the beginning of the dinner meal, so it was possible that he had simply missed that moment between Futaba and Red Mask. "I wonder why Red Mask felt anxious…"

"Who else was there at that time?" Mari asked.

"D-Duh... Everyone else... Th-Though I'm not sure wh-which of them noticed it..." Hikari replied. "I-I bet that stupid storyteller d-didn't know about it... H-He's always so obsessed w-with his dumb fantasies."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Hikari's Account - A few days ago, before dinner began, Hikari saw Futaba give Red Mask her Monopad, which the phantom thief had lost a few hours ago. After getting it back, however, Red Mask looked unusually uneasy.**

Masashi and Mari then headed to the lounge, a small room that had many golden chairs as well as statues of jackal-headed men on the walls. Each of the statues carried an unusually long staff one of whose ends was shaped like a hook and made to resemble a certain animal-like figure, but he could not tell what it was.

_Hmm... I wonder... _Curious, Masashi carefully took the staff out the statue's hand and felt it. The staff was wooden and did not seem easily breakable, but it was rather cumbersome to work with because of its long length.

"By the way," Mari said, "I believe that's called a _was_-scepter."

"It certainly looks familiar," Masashi said. "I think I've seen this before in some Ancient Egyptian artwork or something."

"If I remember correctly, it's meant to be a symbol of power," Mari replied as she looked at it. "That's why it pops up a lot in relics and artwork of weighty authority figures."

"Looks pretty long as well," Masashi commented as he looked from one end to the other. "That thing's got to be about six feet long! There's no way anyone would take a walk around with it, if you ask me."

"Hmm... Hey, Masashi," Mari said, "how strong do you think that is?"

"Uh... I don't know, really," Masashi said, feeling the staff. "It seems pretty strong, but there's no way to tell without trying to hit something with it."

"If that's the case, let's see about that through experimentation."

Masashi looked askance at her. "Uh, what? What do you mean?"

Mari then opened up her arms, her expression still blank. "Try to whack me with it."

"Wh-_WHAT?!_ You want me to hit you with that?!" Masashi exclaimed, eyes widened.

"I'm pretty sure that any attack with it shouldn't hurt too much, but I'd like to test it out just in case," Mari replied calmly. "And even if it hurts more than I expect... well, what's done is done."

"Uh, are you _really_ sure about this?"

"If it's serious, you can call the others and have me treated."

"That wasn't exactly what I was worried about..." Masashi said with a whimpering tone. It was unbelievable that Mari would volunteer herself for such an experiment, as if she were unworried about her well-being, or as if she were confident that she could withstand the hit. "Besides, I don't think I could land a good hit on you with it, anyway. It's way too long to use."

"I'm not concerned about that. I just want to know how strong it is."

A few seconds later, Masashi sighed as he saw how persistent she was in the experiment. "All right, then... Stand still!"

Masashi wielded the staff and, holding the lower end thereof, raised it and swung it at the girl, who slightly flinched at the sight. But upon its landing on her right shoulder, she merely let out a small groan as Masashi felt the recoil going through the staff.

"Huh... Well, that was disappointing," Mari said as she rubbed her shoulder. "Guess it's not very strong."

**Obtained Truth Bullet: Was-scepter - A long scepter that is more than six feet long and is held by one of the statues in the lounge. One of its ends is shaped like a hook and is made to resemble a certain Egyptian figure. Though not easily breakable, because of its length, it is incredibly unwieldy as a weapon.**

"If it were much shorter, it'd be better, I reckon," Masashi said. "Anyway, you're not hurt, are you?"

"Only a little. It's nothing to worry about," Mari replied, her voice showing no pain. "So it's certain that the staff's not very strong. That, or you don't have a lot of strength."

_Hey, I tried my very_ _best!_ Masashi thought. _Besides, do you really want to test my strength? Even if one hit's not strong, a few hits will add up over time._

At that very moment, however, the same old jingle played from the speakers, and Monokuma appeared on the monitor.

"Hey, guys! Guess what? It's time for the class trial!" Monokuma said. "Head on over to the main deck of the Egyptian palace. You've been through this once before, so you know the drill! Well, then, I'll see you guys soon!"

Then the announcement ended.

* * *

The remaining fifteen students gathered at the location that Monokuma had bidden them to go to. Like before, most of the survivors looked uneasy and stayed still, whereas a few others seemed not at all worried at what was coming up.

"I tell you, we've got this in the bag!" Sayua said to Tanjiro, the cheerleader looking more spirited than her follower. "With our minds, there's no way the killer will get away with this."

"Uh, yeah, whatever you say..." Tanjiro replied.

Meanwhile, Red Mask glanced away from the rest of the group, humming a short tune that Masashi could have sworn that he had heard a long while ago from a TV show. Whatever the tune might be, the phantom thief looked far more carefree than Masashi might expect from her usual self.

"Look, everyone!" Sister Hikari cried out as she pointed at the sea. "The ship's coming!"

Indeed, the great black ship appeared on the horizon, and the nearer it came, the more the survivors' dread at what was to come rose. Once it was next to the palace, a gangplank emerged from the ship's deck and landed on the port side of the palace's deck.

"Here we go again…" Sorao said before they all crossed the gangplank.

There was the same elevator waiting for them at the stern. The fifteen students stepped inside, and then the elevator made its noisy and deafening descent to the courtroom. Once the elevator stopped, the students stepped out and saw that the courtroom had changed its appearance as well. Formerly, it had matched the first ship's woodland setting, but now, the walls were painted a light brown, the floor resembling sand in appearance. The eighteen podiums were still there, however, and Haruka's and Futaba's podiums were now occupied by posts showing their crossed-out portraits.

"Ah, welcome back, passengers!" Monokuma said. "Like the redecorating? I felt like a desert theme would be fitting this time. After all, things are going to get pretty heated!"

"I-I'm not sure how much of this I can take…" Hikari mumbled.

"Well, if you're truly innocent, you have nothing to worry about," Abraham said. "Now come on. Let's get this fucking thing over with already."

"Y-Yeah! We'll find the killer in no time, I'm sure!" Faye added.

And so the fifteen students stepped onto their podiums.

_Ah… I can't believe we have to go through all this again…_

Masashi looked at his fellow survivors. Sadly enough, the latest victim was Futaba Inoshishi, the Ultimate Figure Skater. Very early on, when the killing game's reality had still not been shown them yet, most of the group had elected her to be their leader, and she had promised that she would do whatever she could to stop any killings from happening. And even after Atsushi's and Haruka's deaths, she had not wavered in her conviction to make sure that the killing game should not claim another victim. She might have been a bit too uptight and persnickety about a few things, especially because of her upbringing, but there was no doubt that she had done many things in the group's interest, thinking ahead of time.

But it had all been for naught. She had become the next victim instead, having been backstabbed by one of those whom she had sworn to protect. It was such a sickening betrayal that Masashi wondered what had pushed the killer among them to break this trust. Whichever person it might be, that person had broken the peace. The punishment was unpleasant, but there was nothing that he could do about it now. All he could do now was fight for the truth, root out the evildoer, and restore the peace.

* * *

**Here's the investigation, everyone! It's pretty long and a lot to take in, I know, but hopefully, I've done a good enough job to tell you guys all the details you need to know. You can figure out enough of what happened in this case, I think. I'm not sure whether this case is easier than the previous one, so I'm keen to hear your thoughts and guesses on this case! And like last time, not all the Truth Bullets will actually be useful, nor has everything been included as a Truth Bullet.**

**Like last time, I'll show you the trial seating order. It hasn't changed, but I'm of the kind that likes to keep track of this kind of thing:**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki**

**2\. Maiha Hanazawa**

**3\. Murphy O'Hagan**

**4\. Abraham Zargari**

**5\. Arashi Seiya**

**6\. ****Takumi Takamitsu**

**7\. ****Sister Hikari Shinto**

**8\. Haruyuki Kanagawa**

**9\. Mari Anzai**

**10\. Futaba Inoshishi (DEAD)**

**11\. Atsushi Morokuzu (DEAD)**

**12\. Faye Nirigiri**

**13\. Sorao Mineta**

**14\. Haruka Minami (DEAD)**

**15\. "Red Mask"**

**16\. ****Tanjiro Urata**

**17\. ****Sayua Tomi**

**18\. Hikari Fey**

**Since Futaba's now dead, the character nearest to Monokuma's throne is now Mari. Also, Tanjiro stands next to Sayua during the class trial. Isn't that swell?**


	22. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (8)

Masashi took a look at all the evidence that he had found. Hopefully, it was enough to root out the killer hiding among them.

**List of Truth Bullets**

**Monokuma File #2 - The victim is Futaba Inoshishi, the Ultimate Figure Skater. The body was discovered in the Memory Bank, and the victim was killed in that same place. The cause of death was a blow to the head with a blunt instrument. No other injuries have been found.**

**Futaba's Note - "The deputy is hiding something important from you. Go to the Memory Bank tonight to find out what it is. The password is 'Magdalena Engracia Pinto'. But do not go there if you see any boats on the other side. It means that someone is there." This note was found in Futaba's pocket, and of course, one cannot tell from the handwriting who the writer is.**

**No Swimming Rule - It is forbidden to swim in the river.**

**Bloody Message - On the other side of the note in Futaba's left hand is a message written in blood. Unfortunately, Masashi unwittingly caused some of the characters to be unreadable, so what the original message was is now unknown. The remaining characters that could be read are "SU YUKA". It seems that Futaba wrote it in her last moments, given the blood on her left index finger.**

**Memory Bank Pods - The pod's lid can only be shut if one wears the headset and accesses the program, and such an action is then recorded on the History section. Also, the pods are not soundproof.**

**Futaba's History - Futaba's History - All the information recorded on the History section of Futaba's pod. The memories began to be watched at 10:35 PM, but the watching of Memory 7 was abruptly ended at 12:59 AM. The time of exiting the pod is recorded as 1:00 AM. Other than on the day of the memory theft, this pod had not been accessed at all until last night. Also, Futaba's pod was the only pod used last night.**

**Pod Access - All it takes to open a pod is type in the password, even if one is not the pod's owner.**

**Ventilation System - The Memory Bank and the first exhibit room are both connected by a vent. Each side of the vent starts as a five-foot horizontal passageway, and they are both connected at the end by a vertical passageway about twenty feet high.**

**Vent Rule - It is forbidden to crawl through the vents in the palace.**

**Monopad Name - Whenever one turns on a Monopad, the Monopad displays the owner's name.**

**Sorao's Account - Sorao felt a bit sick after dinner at seven o'clock, after which point he rested alone in his room.**

**Murphy's Account - Murphy headed down to the fourth deck around 9:00 PM and stayed there until around 10:30 PM. Afterwards, as he was heading back, he encountered Maiha, and they both headed back to their rooms.**

**River Boats - There are four boats available for going through the river. To get a boat to start moving, one must simply press the power button in front of the front left seat. The boat's movements and speed are all set, and it takes about a minute and a half to get from one side to the other. The boats appear to be the only way to go from one side of the river to the other.**

**Maiha's Account - Maiha was enjoying a drink in the dining room after nighttime began. After she was done, she was about to take a walk around the palace when she stumbled upon Murphy, after which she changed her mind, and they both headed back to their rooms.**

**Spotting Futaba - Maiha saw Futaba going to the main deck around 10:25 PM. Afterwards, around 10:30 PM, Murphy happened to encounter Futaba at the palace's fourth deck. He saw her sail to the Memory Bank on one of the boats. At the time, before Futaba's arrival, all four boats had been on Murphy's side of the river.**

**Sayua's Account - At exactly 1:00 AM, while in the arts and crafts room, Sayua and Tanjiro saw Red Mask running through the third deck's hallway and going up the stairs.**

**Bumper Car Games - Masashi, Mari, Kumi, Tanjiro, Sayua, and Arashi were all in the bumper car room from 8:20 PM to 9:30 PM. Haruyuki was there the whole time as well, but not once did he participate in the game.**

**Lockpicks - Red Mask has been hiding ten lockpicks from the group. However, she has lost two of them over the last few days. Maiha and Haruyuki found them at some point, and they both had the lockpicks last night.**

**Silver Thread - A significant amount of silver thread is missing from one of the cans in the arts and crafts room. The thread is apparently very strong and durable.**

**Metal Bat - A metal bat was found in the second exhibit room during the investigation. It is hard, sturdy, and easy to use, but its size makes it impossible to hide on one's person. There is a slight amount of blood on it.**

**Light Orb - Each exhibit room has four light orbs (meaning that there are eight light orbs in total), and besides the lighting they can provide, they also have the function of playing music and having the music change if someone leaves or enters the room. The light orbs are rather durable, but if dropped from great heights, they are very likely to suffer some damage.**

**Nightly Inspection - Around 7 PM, Abraham and Faye did their nightly inspection of the second exhibit room and found nothing out of the ordinary. After they left the exhibit rooms, Abraham had Faye unlock the door, claiming that he had left a pen inside. While Abraham was inside the exhibit rooms, Faye stood outside in the hallway for about five minutes. After Abraham came out of the exhibit rooms, Faye used her metal detector on him and found nothing suspicious on his person.**

**Metal Inspector - Faye carries around a small metal detector on her person.**

**Morning Duty - Abraham and Faye came to the exhibit rooms around 7 AM, each holding a basket of fifteen cans of food. For about a minute, Faye was occupied with turning on the first exhibit room's light orbs, while Abraham had gone to the second exhibit room and turned on the light orbs there. After he had lit up the room and unpacked his basket, however, he noticed that there were ten cans missing from the pile of yesterday's columns of canned food.**

**Hikari's Account - A few days ago, before dinner began, Hikari saw Futaba give Red Mask her Monopad, which the phantom thief had lost a few hours ago. After getting it back, however, Red Mask looked unusually uneasy.**

**Was-scepter - A long scepter that is more than six feet long and is held by one of the statues in the lounge. One of its ends is shaped like a hook and is made to resemble a certain Egyptian figure. Though not easily breakable, because of its length, it is incredibly unwieldy as a weapon.**

* * *

"Let's begin with a basic explanation of the class trial!" Monokuma began. "During the class trial, you are to present your arguments for who you think the killer is, and in the end, you will vote for 'whodunnit'. If you vote correctly, only the blackened will be punished. But if you vote incorrectly—"

"Yeah, yeah, we get it already!" Sayua said, raising her right hand in anger. "Now come on! Let's find the damn bastard already!"

"Easy enough to say," Sorao said, "but where do you suggest we begin?"

"The time of death seems like a good choice to begin with," Haruyuki said, raising a finger calmly. "I found it rather telling that it was left out in the Monokuma File."

"Ah, that's right!" Kumi said, who had set Sir Teddybane and his book of tales on the stand like last time. "I didn't notice that at all! I'm not of the kind to think a lot about that kind of thing!"

"Oh, don't worry, man. We've already figured that part out," Sorao remarked, a few others looking to be in agreement with his critical judgment, even though they said nothing. Kumi, on the other hand, seemed unwitting of what Sorao had truly meant.

"Anyway... what information is included in the Monokuma File, anyway?" Murphy asked.

"The Monokuma File's meant to help us find the blackened," Abraham said, rubbing his chin, "but it seems to leave out anything that'll directly lead us to the blackened."

"So in other words, what's left out of the file must be pretty weighty, important, and monumental to the case!" Faye added, nodding along. "If we pinpoint when Futaba must have died, we'll be one step closer to the killer!"

"That sounds about right," Tanjiro said.

"Y-Yeah, whatever you say…" Hikari said, who appeared as skittish as usual.

"Then let's get started," Mari said, who seemed rather calm insofar as she even looked a bit bored, as if these proceedings hardly worried her. "Let's see whether we can determine what the time of death is."

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"**Lady Inoshishi was killed sometime during nighttime,** wasn't she?" Sorao began.

"It seems so," Sister Hikari said. "After all, **a few of us saw her before nighttime began.**"

"But the question is: did anyone see her during nighttime?" Abraham asked.

"What kind of question is that?" Sayua said. "We were all sleeping, weren't we? **So it's only natural that no one saw her!**"

"So she could've been killed at any point in nighttime, then," Faye said, nodding along.

"Well, that didn't really help much…" Hikari said.

"In that case, perhaps we should talk about something else, then," Abraham said.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Spotting Futaba**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Wait, that's not true!" Masashi said. "Two of us actually saw Futaba last night. More specifically, Maiha and Murphy each spotted her on different occasions after nighttime."

"What? You two did?" Abraham said, eyeing them incredulously.

"That's right," Maiha said. "While in the dining room, I saw Futaba heading up to the main deck. I believe that the time was around 10:25 PM."

"That's not so far from when I saw her," Murphy said. "I saw her on the fourth deck around 10:30 PM. She boarded one of the four boats there to go to the Memory Bank."

"What?!" Arashi exclaimed. "Wh-Why in the world would she go to that place at that time of night?!"

"Yeah! I mean, I don't think there's anything noteworthy in the Memory Bank, anyway!" Red Mask said.

"Well, there is one reason that I can think of, and it's in a particular note that we found on her body." Masashi then took out the note and showed everyone the contents. "See, take a look at the first part."

"'The deputy is hiding something important from you. Go to the Memory Bank tonight to find out what it is.'" Faye read. "'The password is 'Magdelena Engracia Pinto'. But do not go there if you see any boats on the other side. It means that someone is there.'

"Huh, that's pretty weird…" the pastry cook said once done. "It reminds me a lot of the note that Atsushi had."

"Then it's highly likely that the killer was the one who wrote her that," Tanjiro said.

"Well… That's to be determined," Mari said. "Maybe it was someone else who wrote it. After all, the writer seemed pretty worried about Futaba's safety."

"Huh, that's a good point there, Mari!" Sorao remarked, showing a slight smirk. "It's perfectly possible someone else wrote that, and it's unrelated to the murderer. We can't go ahead and make rash judgments like that, right, Tanjiro?"

"Uh, yeah, thanks for the tip..." Tanjiro sighed as he glanced away from the musician.

"Anyway, that note must've been why Futaba was there when Murphy met her last night!" Arashi replied, eyes widened.

"But I still don't get it!" Kumi said. "What about the Memory Bank made Lady Futaba go there?"

"Well, given the note's contents," Maiha answered, "I think it obvious that she went to examine the contents of her pod. It is where the memories of her darling are stored, after all, and it requires a password."

"Then it's pretty clear who the killer is!"

It was Arashi, who raised his right hand while looking at the others with a keen expression.

"Huh? How is it clear in any way?" Sorao asked, staring bemusedly at him.

"If you think about it, the killer couldn't have simply guessed when Futaba would go to the Memory Bank!" Arashi answered, his tone full of excitement. "The note only said 'tonight', so for all the killer knew, it could be any point at nighttime, right?"

"Yes, that sounds right," Sister Hikari said.

"So the killer needed to see for certain that she went to the Memory Bank," Faye said, "and to do that, they must've gone to the fourth deck and waited for her to come…" Faye then paused, her expression waxing fearful. "Wait a minute… Arashi, are you saying that the killer is…?"

Arashi nodded. "I am! The killer was the very same one who claimed to have stumbled upon her!" He then pointed at a certain person. "It was none other than you, Murphy O'Hagan!"

"Wh-What?! You accuse _me?!_" the Irishman exclaimed as many of the others gazed at him with wariness now. "But why?!"

"I find it very fishy that you happened to be on the fourth deck at that particular time!" Arashi explained. "You said you were painting, but I bet you were actually waiting for Futaba! Then after you saw her… you must've followed her and killed her!"

"_That's_ your reason for thinking me guilty?" Murphy said incredulously.

"Well, in his defense, as far as we know, you're the last one to see her alive…" Tanjiro said. "So you had ample opportunity to do such a thing."

"Th-That's a good point there…" Hikari said.

Murphy ground his teeth as he snarled. "What a load of crock! All I did was say that I'd seen her, and all of a sudden, I'm the bad guy here!"

Nonetheless, as the farmer had no good defense against this accusation, many of the class looked to be in agreement with Arashi, who appeared rather pleased with himself.

_Still, are there any holes in his argument?_ Masashi thought. _I should think about this one carefully…_

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"It's pretty clear you could've done it!" Arashi began. "You must've been waiting there for her to come!"

"What? No, I was doing no such thing!" Murphy countered. "**I was only painting, you see!**"

"What exactly were you painting, anyway?" Sorao said blithely, showing a slight smile.

"How the fuck is that important?" Abraham said.

"Anyway, you saw her go to the Memory Bank," Faye said. "And then **you headed there as well and killed her!**"

"I-It makes sense…" Hikari said. "**N-No one was with Murphy at that point, right?** And a-after he did the d-dirty deed… **h-he simply left and w-went back to his r-room.**"

"That must've been when we stumbled upon each other," Maiha said.

"What ridiculous nonsense this all is," Murphy scoffed. "I won't acknowledge any of it."

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Futaba's History**

**No, that's wrong!**

"No, Hikari, that's not right. He couldn't have simply left after spotting her and then killing her," Masashi said. "After all, it wouldn't explain Futaba's history log."

"Futaba's… h-history log?" Hikari said, slightly bewildered. "Wh-What are you t-talking about?"

"The pod actually has a history log that keeps track of its use," Masashi responded. "And Monokuma told us that last night, it was only Futaba's pod that was used."

He then took out the history log that Monokuma had given him, though very few of the others looked less confused about last night's events than before.

"If what that says is right, then it seems that Futaba started using it at 10:35 PM," Sister Hikari said, "but left the pod at 1:00 AM."

"That means that she must've been killed after that time, right?" Sayua said. "After all, didn't that bear say we'd be safe inside the pod?"

"Aah!" Arashi exclaimed.

"That's right!" Monokuma answered blithely. "Try as you might, the pod's utterly indestructible! Only something on a bomb's scale could get through that thing!"

"Oh, I know!" Arashi countered, having quickly regained his confidence. "Maybe Murphy killed Futaba before she had the chance of going into the pod! Then maybe it was him that entered the pod and faked the whole history thing!"

"Well, there is no limitation on who can enter the pod," Mari said. "All it requires is that the user know the password, that's all."

Masashi shook his head, however. "But that's the problem. If that's true, then it means Murphy must've stayed in the Memory Bank pretending to be Futaba until 1:00 AM. But that can't be the case. After all, Maiha herself saw Murphy later that night."

"Indeed," Maiha replied. "I saw Murphy a few minutes after I saw Futaba. It is certain that he was not at the Memory Bank at 10:35 PM, so he could not have been the one using the pod."

"Then it's clear that Murphy couldn't have killed Futaba around 10:35 PM and then pretended to be her to fool us with the history log," Tanjiro concluded.

"Is it still possible that she was killed around that time, though?" Sorao asked, looking more serious than usual. "Perhaps the killer was waiting in the Memory Bank and ambushed her."

"Well, now that you mention it… Murphy, was anyone at the Memory Bank at the time?" Sister Hikari asked.

Murphy shrugged. "I went to the the fourth deck around 9:00 PM to do my painting. Since I stayed on the same side of the river the whole time, though, I never went to the Memory Bank, so for all I know, someone could've been there."

_Hmm… So I guess that's possible…_ Masashi thought, unable to think of anything that could gainsay Sorao's guess. _Maybe the killer truly was hiding there to catch her unawares._

"In that case," Haruyuki said, "let me ask you: how many boats did you see on that side of the river?"

Murphy scratched his head. "Well, I saw none, but what does that have to do with anything?"

Haruyuki clicked his tongue. "Take a look at the note again. Notice the latter half: 'But do not go there if you see any boats on the other side. It means that someone is there.'

"In short, since the only way to go to the Memory Bank is by boat, one could use the boats as an indicator of whether someone is at the Memory Bank," the art critic continued as he raised a finger. "Since you saw no boats, no one must have gone there before Futaba."

"Ah, then, the killer wasn't hiding in the Memory Bank…" Sorao sighed, lowering his eyes. "Man, and here I was thinking that I figured it all out…"

"Wait a minute!" Arashi cried out, his eyes still full of fieriness. "Maybe the killer was hiding in one of the nearby rooms and then followed after her after Murphy left!"

Murphy shook his head, however. "No, that can't be it. Before going back to my room, I took a quick glance at each room, since I wondered whether there was anyone else still up at night. But the only one I saw afterwards was Maiha, I can tell you that."

"Huh, so that possibility's out," Sorao said. "Then around 10:35 PM, the only one who was at the Memory Bank appears to have been Lady Inoshishi…"

"So Futaba must've been the one that used the pod," Faye concluded. "And since the memory pods can't be broken through, she must've then been killed sometime around 1:00 AM, when she left the pod!"

"Gah…" Arashi looked down at his podium with a defeated look. For what it was worth, Masashi appreciated that he had tried to help them figure out the culprit's identity, even if his theory had ended up being shown to be wrong.

"All right, then… Now what?" Sayua said, looking as frustrated as before. "We're still getting goddamn nowhere with this whole thing, you know!"

Abraham rubbed his chin once more. "Well, the next obvious topic to talk about is what the killer used to kill Futaba."

"Ah, yes, a good choice for discussion," Haruyuki said. "It was another oddity that I spotted in the Monokuma File. All it said was that she was killed with a blunt instrument, and yet no such thing was found at the crime scene."

"Ooh, ooh, I've just thought of something!" Drawing a few groans from his peers, Kumi raised his hand excitedly. "Maybe the evil warlock used a spell—"

"_Shut up,_" Maiha said while staring at him coldly.

"H-Huh? But I didn't even finish…" Kumi said, his glee quickly fleeting.

"I don't need you to finish. I could already tell that you were about to spew nothing but rank hogwash," Maiha retorted, many others looking to be in agreement with the sentiment. "Last time, you also wasted our precious time, so it is beyond clear to even your fellow commoners that your mind is bereft of all its vital functions."

"H-Huh? What are you saying?" Kumi asked, confused.

"What, you don't get it? She's calling you a dumbass, you dumbass!" Sayua answered.

Gasping, Kumi shrank back with a sad and sheepish countenance, holding fast to his teddy bear. "Um… A-All right… I'll, um, be quiet, then… Sorry, I only wanted to help."

"Oh, don't pay them any mind, Kumi!" Sister Hikari said energetically, as she was among the few that could handle Kumi's fantastic thinking. "Even if your ideas aren't correct, I still appreciate your efforts to help us! So feel free to say whatever's on your mind!"

"Th-That's the worst thing you've s-said so far…" Hikari said, glowering. "Wh-Why would you e-encourage him to k-keep telling us his st-stupid ideas?"

"_Anyway…_" Faye said, looking a bit annoyed by the chatter. "Abraham and I tried to look for the murder weapon, but the only place that had anything usable as a blunt instrument was, well…" She scratched her cheek. "It was the second exhibit room. It was only natural, since a few days ago, we two had put away all items deemed dangerous in that room. Things like knives and ropes are stowed in there now."

"And what item was the likeliest to be the murder weapon?" Haruyuki asked.

Masashi thought for a few seconds. "We found a metal bat that had a bit of blood on it. And when I held the bat, I found it rather easy to use as a weapon."

"Then it's pretty obvious that the killer used that bat as the murder weapon!" Arashi declared.

"Yes, that's what I think as well," Abraham said. "It's fucking surprising, really, that there are so few good blunt instruments on the ship."

"In any case, the weapon is certain to have come from the second exhibit room," Sorao said.

"Aha! I've got it!" Sayua then faced one of the others, showing a keen and excited expression. "Since the killer must've been able to go to the second exhibit room, it was none other than you, Abraham!"

Abraham grimaced as the others now directed their suspicion at him. "Y-You fucking maggot! What the fuck do you think you're saying?! I'm the culprit?!"

"You have the key to the second exhibit room, don't you?" Sayua said plainly. "So only you have access to that room!"

"Y-Yeah, that's right!" Arashi said, gaping. "He could've grabbed the bat at any point and killed Futaba with it!"

"A-And I can definitely see him k-kill her like that…" Hikari said.

The waiter merely gave the others a sidelong glance as he frowned. "It becomes pretty fucking clear that I'm not the killer if you use even a thousandth of your brain, fucking dumbasses. To get to the second exhibit room, I would have had to go through the first exhibit room."

"But I'm the only one that has the key to the first exhibit room," Faye said, glancing elsewhere as well. "That's why we two had to do the nightly inspection together."

"And for your information," Abraham continued, "last night, when we two did our inspection, the bat and the other items were still there. Nothing was missing. Even when I was alone in the exhibit rooms for a few minutes, I couldn't have done it."

"Wait, you were _alone?_" Murphy said.

"Yeah, come to think of it…" Tanjiro said. "Faye, during the investigation, I think you told us that Abraham was by himself in the room for a short while."

Faye nodded, giving her co-worker an uneasy glance. "After we finished our inspection, we left the exhibit rooms. But Abraham then said that he had left his pen inside, so he asked for my key and went back by himself to get it while I waited outside in the hallway."

"And how long was he there?" Haruyuki asked.

Faye eyed Abraham uneasily again before answering. "About five minutes, I think."

"Sounds to me like a golden opportunity to sneak something out!" Red Mask said blithely.

_No, I don't think so,_ Masashi thought. _Abraham couldn't have snuck the bat out, and I can prove why._

"Well, besides the impracticality of sneaking a bat of that size out," Masashi said, "Faye actually could verify that he hadn't hidden anything on his body. After all, when he left the room, she used her metal detector on him."

Abraham sneered. "And she found nothing from the room, which proves that I hadn't tried to smuggle anything out."

Faye sighed. "Yeah… That's right. Nothing besides his usual tools and his Monopad."

Masashi nodded. "Even though Abraham had the key to the second exhibit room, I think it's pretty clear that he couldn't have—"

"_**Not so fast, blockhead!**_"

It was none other than Sayua, who pointed at him with such forcefulness that Masashi nearly started.

"You think he's innocent because of that?" Sayua said. "Well, I don't think so! That guy may have fooled you, but I'll have you know that there's more than one way to skin a cat!"

"I… don't know what you're talking about," Masashi looked at her bemusedly. "The nightly inspection was the only opportunity for Abraham to sneak something out, wasn't it? But Faye herself showed that he couldn't have done it."

Sayua sneered as she flicked her hand. "You think that was what I had in mind when I said he was the culprit? Well, think again, pal, and get ready to be enlightened!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: Sayua Tomi**

"Well, sure, he couldn't have smuggled anything out during the inspection," Sayua said.

"But who's to say that he had no other opportunity?

"**He had no alibi after the inspection, right?**

"So it means he could've gone into the room after he left that pastry cook!

"He could've then grabbed the bat and made off with it!"

"But there's a big flaw in your argument!" Masashi pointed out. "Sure, he had the time to do so later, but more importantly, without Faye's key, he couldn't get into the first exhibit room. So he couldn't have gone into the second exhibit room!"

"Who says that he needed to go through the door?" Sayua countered.

"After all, **there's a vent in the first exhibit room**, isn't there?

"And it's pretty low on the wall, so there's no problem getting in or out of it!

"He must've gone to the room that it's connected to!

"Then **he climbed through the vent** and got inside!

"I bet he had some kind of tool to help him go up the vent!

"You know, like what those climbers use!

"Afterwards, he got the bat and left through the same way!

"And he could've done it **without anyone spotting him!**"

**Truth Bullet Chosen: Vent Rule**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"Sorry, Sayua, but you're wrong," Masashi said. "Abraham couldn't have climbed through the vent after the inspection. After all, on the same day we got the motive, Monokuma made it forbidden to do so."

"Wh-What?!" Sayua said, scowling. "Are you kidding me?!"

"Nope, he's not!" Monokuma said. "Indeed, no one could have snuck through the vent. After all, my special edition ratsbane hasn't come yet! After I kill off all those pesky rats, I can let you guys crawl through them to your hearts' content!"

"Uh, yeah, I'll pass up on that," Sorao remarked.

"Anyway, it's clear that Abraham couldn't have stealthily tried to get the bat," Mari said. "Since he couldn't crawl through the vent, he couldn't access the second exhibit room after the nightly inspection was over."

"No fucking way!" Sayua exclaimed in protest. "Are you saying I'm wrong?"

"Well, with all due respect, none of us have to say you're wrong," Tanjiro said meekly. "The logic speaks for itself, I'm afraid."

"By the way," Sister Hikari, "to what room exactly does the vent connect?"

Monokuma chortled. "What, you still don't know? It's connected to the Memory Bank! Theoretically, if there were no such rule, you guys could go from the second deck to the fourth deck in a jiffy by using the vent. But, hey, enough with theoretical stuff! What's important is that if someone had tried to crawl through it, that same person would've been punished!"

"Well, I guess we can rule out sneaking into the first exhibit room from the Memory Bank," Sorao said. "So it appears that for Abraham, it was impossible to sneak into the room after the inspection was over."

"Exactly!" Abraham said, nodding pridefully. "And besides, even if I _had _somehow smuggled the bat out without using the vent, I would have needed to put it back in the second exhibit room. After all, when Faye and I went to the room this morning as part of our duty of stowing the emergency supplies there, we found the bat there. I would've needed to put the bat there after the murder."

"And to put the bat back, you would've needed Faye's key…" Tanjiro said. "After all, you couldn't have very well climbed up the vent after the deed was done."

Kumi raised his hand. "Um, excuse me, but just to be safe… are we sure there aren't any hidden passageways to the exhibit rooms?"

Abraham let out a short laugh. "That'd certainly make things much easier for you, wouldn't it? But to answer your question: _no, you dumbass, there are no hidden passageways_."

"Oh… Well, then, maybe the evil warlock could've used teleportation magic—"

"Back to important matters..." Sorao said, not at all caring about how shocked Kumi looked from being interrupted again, "It appears that Abraham can't be the killer."

Abraham let out a sigh of relief before letting out a haughty sneer. "I told you fucking maggots that I was innocent."

"All right, then… Now what?" Arashi said. "If Abraham can't be the killer, then who is?"

Sorao thought for a few seconds. "It's clear that to get the bat, the killer must have had access to both exhibit rooms. Neither Abraham nor Faye had both keys, so they should both be innocent. But somehow, someone got inside… Perhaps that person used a _tool_ of some kind. Get what I mean, Masashi?"

_Ah, I see!_ Masashi thought. _By "tool", he's clearly referring to this!_

"Are you talking about... lockpicks?" Masashi asked.

"Sure am. Nothing too complicated, as you can see, and I remember seeing one a while ago," Sorao said with a hint of playfulness. "Isn't that right, Red Mask?"

At once, all the others gazed at the phantom thief, who looked back with a slightly startled expression.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Red Mask said a few seconds later, her voice composed but unable to hide her slight shock. "I-I don't see how this has anything to do with me!"

"Enough with your pissing around!" Abraham said, glaring at her. "You have a lockpick on you, don't you? I saw you pick one up a few days ago."

"Yeah, I saw you pick one up as well!" Arashi yelled.

"And during the investigation, you even told me that you owned ten of them," Masashi replied. "That means you could've snuck into the exhibit rooms and stolen the bat."

"Wait, but if Red Mask had picked the locks," Kumi said, "wouldn't the locks have stayed unlocked?"

Sorao shook his head. "No, man, if it's easy to unlock a door with a lockpick, then it's just as easy to re-lock it with the same tool. At least, that's what I've heard."

"Well... you've heard right," Monokuma said, hanging his head. "Trust me, I learned that the hard way. I once stowed my salmon in my treasure chest, but since it was always locked, I simply assumed they were still inside. Imagine how shocked I was to see them all gone one day!"

"Uh, I think there was a much greater problem if you were keeping your food in a treasure chest of all things," Faye remarked.

"Well, Red Mask? What do you have to say for yourself?" Sorao asked. "The spotlight's on you, so if you want to defend yourself, now's the time to do it, you know."

The thief merely set her right hand on her mask as she glanced upwards. "W-Well... All right, it's true that I have lockpicks! But that doesn't mean that it was me that broke into the exhibit room and took the bat! After all, I had lost two of the lockpicks by the time the murder happened!"

"_What?_" Abraham said, scowling as he clenched a fist, greatened loathing in his eyes. "Are you bullshitting us right now? That sounds like a rather fucking convenient defense to make!"

"Actually, no, she's not," Masashi said, recalling what he had heard. "She actually had lost two of her lockpicks. I know because two of us now have them. Maiha and Haruyuki told me themselves during the investigation."

"Wh-What?! No way!" Arashi exclaimed.

"Is this true?" Sister Hikari asked, she and the others looking uneasily at them.

Haruyuki let out a wry chuckle. "Indeed, he has uttered no falsehood. I found a lockpick a few days ago, and I had kept it to myself up until the investigation."

Maiha crossed her arms and looked back at the others with disdainful eyes. "I found the lockpick a while ago, but that is not proof of wrongdoing, is it?"

"Well, this is troublesome…" Mari said. "It seems that any of them could've done it."

"But hey, at the very least, all this has made one thing clear," Sorao said before widening his smile. "Since the killer must've used a lockpick to access the second exhibit room, that narrows down the number of possible suspects from fifteen… to _three._"

It was then that the wariness in the gazes of many others greatened as they glanced at the three who had had the lockpicks last night. And they had good reason to be wary; Masashi could think of nothing wrong with Sorao's reasoning, given that he had proven that Abraham could not have accessed the room after the inspection.

"So the killer's one of you guys!" Arashi declared. "All right, which one of you is it?! I bet it was you, Red Mask! You're totally suspicious!"

"N-No! It wasn't me! I'm a thief, but my poor old self would _never_ kill anyone! Truly!" the phantom thief replied, her smile looking more and more out of place. "I-It could've been one of the other two! They could've taken the weapon without a hitch!"

"Ah… I see that I am now under the spotlight," Haruyuki said calmly, as if the accusation had nothing to do with him. "I must admit, there is a certain discomfort within me right now… But this too shall pass. In the meantime, I shall relish the moment."

Clenching a fist, Maiha frowned greatly as she glared at the others with loathing eyes. "Addleheaded commoners! You dare suspect me _again!_ What will it take to make you see that I would _never_ do such a foul misdeed? If anything, we ought to suspect the thief, as she had hidden the lockpicks from the rest of us since the very beginning!"

The three denied the accusations once more, but the others still looked unsure about which one they ought to suspect, and so began the debate, more hectic than usual.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"I didn't get the bat from the room!" Red Mask began. "After all, I'm not the only one that could've unlocked the door! **After all, the other two had no solid alibis at nighttime as well!"**

"I have done nothing wrong," Maiha said, raising a finger. "I simply **found the lockpick on the floor a while ago.** And I assure you, **I have never used a lockpick before.**"

"Yes, and **I found mine in the kitchen,**" Haruyuki added. "I admit, I have kept it hidden from the rest of you, but I assure you, I have done nothing with it."

"Really?" Sorao said. "Why should we believe you?"

"**I'm a man of seeing, not of doing,**" Haruyuki replied. "And I prefer to keep things like that."

"By the way… none of you were up to anything last night, were you?" Faye asked.

"Of course I wasn't!" Red Mask said. "**I didn't leave my room!**"

"And as for me," Maiha said, "after I headed back to our rooms with Murphy, **I went to bed.**"

"And **I was sleeping in my room the whole night,**" Haruyuki said. "To think that a murder happened during my slumber... I wonder what spectacles I would have seen if I'd been a witness."

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Sayua's Account**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Sorry, Red Mask, but you're lying," Masashi began. "After all, you were at the palace last night, weren't you?"

Red Mask started before regaining her composure. "Wh-What are you talking about? Y-You can't just say that without any proof, you know!"

"Oh, but I have an eyewitness account to back me up," Masashi replied before facing the cheerleader. "Sayua, you and Tanjiro saw Red Mask running in the palace's third deck, didn't you?"

"Hah! You've got that right!" Sayua replied with a somewhat haughty expression. "Tanjiro and I were in the arts and crafts room, and we saw you at 1:00 AM!"

"Wh-_What?!_" Red Mask exclaimed. "Y-You two… saw me?"

"Whoa, hold the phone!" Sorao said, raising his right hand. "Tanjiro, what were you two doing there that late? Don't tell me that you two were... Nah, it can't be. You're not that daring."

Tanjiro sighed, as if repulsed by the unsightly implications of the remark. "For your information, Sayua and I went there—"

"Th-They were doing something bad to Sir Teddybane!" Kumi answered before giving the cheerleader a grumpy sidelong glance. "That wicked troll Sayua had stolen him!"

"Huh? She did what?" Faye said, confused, and meanwhile, Sayua looked not at all bothered by Kumi's anger toward her, whereas Tanjiro grew drearier in his expression.

Sorao scratched his head. "I… still don't get what you're talking about. But either way, Sayua and Tanjiro, you saw Red Mask at 1:00 AM, right? So that means that our friendly neighborhood thief was lying about not doing anything last night."

"Eep!" Red Mask squealed as she moved her hands nearer to her chest. "W-Well… Th-There's a good explanation for that, really!"

"So it's true?" Abraham said, eyes widened. "Those two happened to see you there that time of all times?"

Though the mask covered the upper half of her face, one could tell from her nervous smile that the revelation had bereft her of much calmness.

"Y-You see…" Red Mask began. "I… I wasn't doing anything funny, really! The truth is, I was…. I was only doing my nightly jogging!"

"Your… 'nightly jogging'," Sorao said plainly, eyeing her with a mix of shock and unbelief. "You jog at night?"

"Yeah! We phantom thieves often work late at night, so it's not unusual at all!" Red Mask answered, nodding along as confidence returned to her voice. "I like to do my exercises late at night to stay in shape, and I just happened to be jogging back to my room when Sayua and Tanjiro saw me!"

"What…? Really?" Masashi said, unsure as to whether he ought to believe her. On one hand, it sounded rather made-up, but on the other hand, given her eccentricity, it was not fully unbelievable that she had that kind of habit.

"That is the stupidest fucking thing that I have ever heard," Abraham said, glaring at her in an unfriendly way.

"Surely you won't expect us to believe that," Faye added. "I bet you were actually heading back from the Memory Bank after you had killed Futaba."

Red Mask shook her head profusely. "N-No way! I-I did no such thing, I swear! I mean, yeah, I didn't tell you guys about my jogging, but I didn't want you to suspect me, truly!"

"I don't know what to think… Maybe she's telling the truth," Tanjiro said. "It may be that her being spotted was just an instance of bad luck."

"If I were her, I wouldn't do any jogging at night," Murphy said. "There's no telling what may lurk in the nearby shadows."

"Well, thieves like to work in the shadows! That's how they can get away so easily with what they're doing! So maybe Red Mask just likes it that way!" Kumi said as he gave the cheerleader another dirty glance. Apparently, he would not let that go any time soon.

"Indeed," Haruyuki said. "I myself am aware of one instance when she was up and about at night."

Come to think of it, Red Mask had snuck off to a certain part of the ship on the first night of the killing game. Her spotting of Atsushi had been the very cause of Masashi's investigation of the hidden room the next night.

_Maybe it truly was just bad timing…_ Masashi thought. _Still… she's hiding something, I know it. But how do I get her to say it…?_

"Let's talk about something else, then."

It was Sorao, who stood there calmly, his face showing no signs of worry.

"I don't think it's a good idea to get hung up on whether Red Mask is the culprit without further evidence," Sorao explained. "In the meantime, maybe we should look at another part of the case and see whether that yields us anything."

"Then what do you suggest that we talk about next, commoner?" Maiha asked, among the few that were displeased with Sorao's suggestion. "I know of nothing else of greater importance."

Haruyuki let out a small chuckle as he touched his gray scarf. "Instead of thinking about whether she lies, maybe we should go over the evidence at the crime scene. Perhaps there is something that shows a connection to the culprit. Otherwise, we shall not be getting anywhere, shall we?"

"Hah! All right by me!" Red Mask said.

"I suppose it'll be good to go over the crime scene again," Mari said.

Maiha frowned as she shook her head. "Ridiculous. The thief is obviously suspicious, and yet you insist on wasting our time. We ought to interrogate her further instead."

"Hey, now, you seem pretty insistent that we not change the topic," Sorao remarked, scratching his cheek a little as a little smirk popped up on his face. "Is there any particular reason for that?"

The ballroom dancer said nothing as she shut her mouth, instead glaring at him with loathing eyes. With that out of the way, the class trial moved on to the next topic.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"What was at the crime scene, anyway?" Tanjiro asked.

"Well, to begin with, there's the corpse," Mari said. "Futaba had the note telling her to go to the Memory Bank."

"**I bet the thief chick wrote that!**" Sayua said.

"Y-You don't have any proof for that!" Red Mask countered.

"Are we sure **that's the only message Futaba left behind, though?**" Sister Hikari said. "Maybe there's another clue like the pod history."

"But **I don't think her pod history tells us anything,**" Faye said. "So I think that's it."

"But that means we haven't gotten anywhere!" Arashi said, shocked.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Strange Note**

**I agree with that!**

"Sister Hikari, you're right about that part," Masashi said. "The note I showed you guys earlier is the only thing left by Futaba, but it also has a message written in blood on the other side."

"B-_Blood?!_" Kumi shuddered as he held his teddy bear up to the lower half of his face. "B-But why? Wh-Why would it be written in blood?'

"Perhaps it was Futaba's dying message," Mari suggested. "The Monokuma File never said that she had died instantly, so it's possible she wrote it in her last moments."

"And obviously, there was no ink available," Haruyuki said, "so she had to make do with the blood coming out of her wound."

"Well, uh…" Masashi chuckled nervously before figuring out a way to word this well. "You see… I, uh, accidentally dropped the note in the pool of blood, and part of the back got stained, so…"

"Thanks to your fucking clumsiness…. You've destroyed a potentially important piece of evidence," Abraham finished as he ground his teeth. From the sternness in his eyes, Masashi could tell that the waiter was trying to hold back his wrath.

"Yeah, Masashi, if that's Futaba's dying message," Faye said, looking irked as well, "then we could've figured out who the killer is in an instant!"

"Now, now!" Sister Hikari said. "Surely there's still something we can glean from the note, isn't there? After all, not all the note's been stained, right?"

"Right… some of it is still readable," Masashi answered, relieved to see Sister Hikari not upset about this. "As far as I can tell, the note says: 'SU YUKA'."

"Su… Yuka?" Murphy asked, he and many of the others looking stunned and confused.

"Wh-What, really? Th-That's pretty weird… Whatever does it mean?" Red Mask commented as she set a hand on her mask.

"I've never heard of that before," Sister Hikari said. "Still, if Futaba wrote it, then it must mean something."

"But it only says 'SU YUKA' on it!" Arashi said. "How the heck can we tell anything from that! That could be anything!"

"Hmm… I don't think so…" Mari said, looking as if staring off at those right before her. "I think we should ask ourselves what Futaba would think to write as a dying message. Then we may be able to figure out what it says."

"Well, if I'd been hit on the head, but still had some time before my death…" Murphy said. "I'd naturally want others to find out who killed me, so I'd write down the killer's name somewhere."

"Same for me," Sorao said. "Seems pretty likely that the name on that note belongs to one of us."

"B-But aren't we still stuck?" Kumi asked, cocking his head in confusion. "I-I mean... the other characters are now covered in that awful blood, so it could've been any of us!"

Abraham scoffed. "Well, normally, yes, but I suppose we should be fucking thankful Masashi didn't stupidly destroy the whole note. If the note has the killer's name on it, then the name has to have 'SU' and 'YUKA' in it, doesn't it?"

"Oh, that's right!" Sister Hikari said. "Assuming that 'SU' belongs to the first name, and 'YUKA' to the last name… We can see which of our names don't qualify for that! Thank you for pointing that out, Abraham."

The waiter sneered as he raised his head a little. "It was nothing too difficult to figure out, but in this kind of situation, your minds are a little addled, so naturally, I'm here to set things straight."

"You don't have to sound smug about it, you know…" Sorao remarked. "Anyway, whose names have those characters on the note?"

"I-I'm pretty sure mine doesn't!" Arashi said.

"Nor does mine," Mari said.

"Well… none of our names qualify, really…" Masashi said, having gone through everyone's names. Indeed, not a single one that he knew of had a "SU" or a "YUKA" in it. "But… there is still one name that I haven't checked yet."

Masashi then turned toward the thief, who had suddenly turned quiet as she bit her lip. "Hey, Red Mask."

Not replying, she glanced away from him, the calmness on her countenance obviously forced. It was all right, though; she would have to say something in a few seconds, anyway.

"I have only one question for you," Masashi continued, many of the others staring sternly at her. "What's your real name?"

The reality of the situation was now unavoidable. She suppressed a grunt as she turned back toward Masashi, covering the lower half of her face with both hands.

"Well? What's your real name?" Sorao asked, showing a smile as if taking delight in her situation.

For a while, the phantom thief said nothing, glancing downwards as she trembled. Eventually, however, she looked back up with a less uneasy expression.

"Well... if it's really that important, I guess I'll tell you..." She took a deep breath before continuing. "My real name's Nonoka Shiozawa. That's all you want from me, right?"

"Really? That's your name?" Masashi said.

"Yep, sure is!" the thief said, confidence reappearing in her face. "I didn't want to tell you guys, since as a phantom thief, I want to keep my true identity a secret! But since you guys keep suspecting me, I guess there's no point in keeping it up!"

"Well, I can't say I feel too bad about it, given your… shady profession," Sister Hikari replied. "But I suppose your name was still important to you, so on some level, I'm sorry that we forced you to reveal yourself."

Nonoka giggled. "Well, no worries! Anyway, it's clear that I'm innocent, right? I mean, look at my name! Not one 'SU' and 'YUKA' in it!"

Kumi gasped. "Then it means you can't be the one whose name Lady Futaba wrote on the note! But that means that none of our names could be on the note!"

"Then maybe the note doesn't actually have the killer's name on it," Faye suggested. "Maybe it's something else."

"Well, there's one possibility that you've fucking forgotten about," Abraham said before glancing at the phantom thief. "You say that your name's Nonoka Shiozawa, but how do we know that you're not bullshitting us?"

"Wh-What?" Nonoka stammered. "Wh-What makes you think I'd lie about it?"

Haruyuki chuckled. "Well, one reason comes to mind. Namely, that as a phantom thief, you think it paramount to hide your real name. You said so a few seconds ago, after all."

"Oh, yeah!" Arashi exclaimed as he clenched his fists. "There's no way we can tell whether you're lying to us!"

"But I'm not lying to you guys!" Nonoka said playfully. "I swear that 'Nonoka Shiozawa' is definitely my real name! You can trust my word!"

"But you were just lying about what you were doing last night, weren't you?" Murphy pointed out.

"Well, can't a girl have a sudden change of heart?" Nonoka retorted as she giggled once more. "And besides, even if you think I'm lying, how do you plan to prove it?"

"How about Monokuma?" Faye suggested. "He's the one that put us here in this in the first place, so he should know what your real name is!"

Monokuma chortled as everyone looked at him. "Hey, now, if I confirmed whether someone's lying during a class trial, that'd be rather biased of me! I will have no judicial corruption in this courtroom! I'll gladly answer your questions if it's about the rules or if my good name's been slandered, but that's it!"

"In short, you won't tell us a whit…" Tanjiro sighed.

_Is there any way to find out what her real name is?_ Masashi thought, almost certain that "Nonoka Shiozawa" was nothing more than a fake name. Given that she wanted to hide her identity, she would naturally keep it secret from the rest of the group, and since Monokuma decided to be uncooperative now of all times, there was absolutely no one that could verify whether she was telling the truth. And Red Mask had every reason to hide her name, were it for hiding her identity or hiding the connection that she had to Futaba's murder, so anything coming out of her mouth was utterly useless.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"I refuse to believe your bullshit," Abraham said angrily as he gave Red Mask the evil eye. "**You're lying, I can tell that much.**"

"Say what you want, but your words mean nothing to me!" Red Mask giggled as she set her hand on her mask in a dramatic fashion. "And you can't prove I'm lying, can you?"

"Yeah, **it's not as if Red Mask had told anyone about her name…**" Sorao said, appearing to be in deep thought.

"And **there's nothing else that can tell us as well,**" Murphy said.

"So it seems we're at a dead end here…" Tanjiro said.

"Yeah, well, my gut says her name's on the note!" Sayua said. "**So we should just vote for her and get it over with!**"

"N-No way I'm going to do that!" Arashi exclaimed, eyeing the cheerleader angrily.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Monopad Name**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Actually, Murphy, there is one thing that can tell us Red Mask's name," Masashi said. "It's the Monopad."

"_Ah!_" the phantom thief let out as she winced.

"What?! Her Monopad?!" Arashi said. "But why?!"

Abraham sighed as he set his hand on his forehead. "You idiotic hothead… He's referring to the part where the Monopad shows our name whenever it's turned on."

"Huh?! Is that true?!" Arashi exclaimed, looking truly shocked before he got out his Monopad and checked it. "Th… That's right! It shows my name when I turn it on!"

"It's the same for the rest of us," Tanjiro said as he checked his as well.

"Huh, so it is…" Murphy said as he looked at his. "I haven't used the dang thing since I got it, so I utterly forgot about it."

"Well, with that, we don't need the thief chick to say any more!" Sayua said as she glared at Red Mask. "Your damn Monopad's got your real name on it!"

"E-Eep!" Red Mask squealed as everyone looked at her with wary eyes once more, her confidence quickly waning. "W-Well, I… I… see no need to look at it..."

"Well, Red Mask, you know what we want from you," Sorao said.

"Th-There's no need…" Red Mask giggled nervously, her lips quivering. "I-It's all a waste of time, don't you think?"

"Just take out your Monopad and show us your real name," Faye said.

"Y-You… You and y-your insistence on hearing my name… D-Don't you think it's pointless—"

"Red Mask," Masashi interrupted, looking at her sternly.

"Grk!" the phantom thief let out as she frowned.

"Please… Please don't make things any harder anymore," Masashi continued, softening his expression. "I know that you don't want to, but we need to see your Monopad."

"Gah… Y-You…"

"If your name fits the one on the note, then you'll have to explain yourself."

"Y-You… You… Can't you..."

"It's all for our sakes, so please, show us your Monopad—"

"_**Can't you shut up for even a second?!**_"

The phantom thief's exclamation startled nearly everyone, and she then looked back at the group, but this time, her face showed not quivering lips but a furious scowl.

"You can't stop yammering about my real name, can you?! Why do you have to be so goddamn persistent about it?!" the thief said, her tone full of fury and haughtiness, and this change from her usually happy and cheerful disposition made a few of the others gasp and look at her with great bewilderment.

"U-Um… are you all right?" Kumi asked shyly.

"Oh, what do you think?! Of course I'm not all right, _moron!_" Red Mask replied, her fist clenched.

"Eep! Sh-She sounds as bad as Sayua!" Kumi whimpered, hiding his face behind Sir Teddybane. "Th-That must be Red Mask's other self, which she wears her enchanted mask to hold back!"

"She's still wearing the mask, though…" Murphy pointed out.

"Bwahahaha!" Monokuma said as he clutched his belly. "Who would've thought that the overly friendly girl ended up having a nasty side to her! She definitely reminds me of my second ex-wife!"

"Wait, 'second'?" Sorao said as if it were actually important.

"W-Wow… She sounds pretty different now!" Arashi said, as if amazed that someone could sound even angrier than he.

"Ah… This unleashing of pent-up emotions… To see the Ultimate Phantom Thief's blithesome image crumble… To witness such a dramatic change as she is backed into a corner... How _wonderful_!"

Of all people, it was Haruyuki, who embraced himself with his own arms as he seemed not at all taken back by her change in attitude. On the contrary, he showed a far more interested expression than his usual blank yet critical expression, looking at the phantom thief with glinting eyes as if he were a child given his favorite dessert.

_Oh, God, this wasn't what I was expecting..._ Masashi thought, dismayed by his reaction.

"Shut up! Just shut up, art weirdo!" Red Mask bade as she angrily raised her hand. "Even if my real name's on my Monopad, there's a very good reason why my Monopad doesn't need to be checked!"

"You're _still_ going to hide it from us?" Masashi said incredulously.

"I'm not the kind to give up easily, you know!" the shrewish thief said. "You seem to have forgotten one very important thing, so I guess I'll have to spell it out to you!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: "Red Mask"**

"There's a good reason why you don't need to check my Monopad!" Red Mask began.

"If you say that Futaba wrote my name down on the note...

"Then Futaba must've known what my name is!

"Otherwise, how could she write down a name she didn't know?!

"As a phantom thief, I would never let her find out what my true identity is!

"So I'd have no reason to show her my Monopad!

"Sure, you may not have given her your Monopad," Masashi countered, "but what if she somehow managed to take a look at it?"

"'Take a look at it?' Don't be stupid!" Red Mask replied.

"**I would never lend her my Monopad!**

"**So at no point did she ever have her hands on it!**

"**Nor would I ever lend anyone else it!**

"So she couldn't have found out what it was!

"Now just shut up about my real name and talk about something else!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen: Hikari's Account**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"Nice try, Red Mask, but there was one opportunity when Futaba could've found out your name from the Monopad," Masashi said.

"Wh-Wh-_What?!_" Red Mask said, trembling a little as her snarl lessened in its wrath. "Wh-What are you talking about?! I'd never let Futaba have my Monopad!"

"Well, yes, you'd never give her your Monopad," Masashi replied, "but what about when she found your Monopad after you somehow lost it?"

"_Ah!_" Red Mask exclaimed as it became clear what he was talking about. "W-Well.. I…!"

"Hikari told me that a few days ago, before dinner, Futaba had given you your Monopad, having found it," Masashi continued, finding Red Mask's shock to be telling enough. "Futaba certainly must've turned on the Monopad to see whose it is, and she must've deduced that a Monopad with a name she didn't recognize must be yours."

"Ah… Ah… _Aaaaaah!_" Red Mask said as her frown deepened.

"And one more thing," Masashi said. "Hikari noted that you looked rather uneasy after getting it back. I reckon that you realized that Futaba knew about your real name!"

"_Gah!_" Red Mask exclaimed. It seemed that his guess was right on the mark.

"So Futaba definitely knew what Red Mask's name was!" Arashi said.

"Yes, and she could've written it down on the note," Abraham said.

Masashi pointed right at the thief, who started upon meeting his gaze. "Well, Red Mask? Since you won't say it with your own mouth, will you show us your Monopad instead?"

"Ah... Ah... _Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah..._"

For a few seconds, the phantom thief struggled to say anything as everyone looked at her with bated breath. Masashi wondered whether he had gone too far with the pressure on her; it was important that she tell them her real name, and yet, as Sister Hikari had said earlier, it was a secret dear to her, and so in a way, it felt a bit wrong to make her do so.

_No… It has to be done…_ Masashi thought in the end. _If I want to go back to how things usually are, then it has to be done._

"Aah… I can't believe it… To be put on this crappy ship and be forced to give up my name…" Red Mask grumbled. "Guess my lameass excuses won't work anymore."

"Excuses…? Then you admit your deception at last," Maiha said, staring coldly at her.

"Heh heh… yeah… it was worth a try, right? Guess I might as well give it up... There's nothing else I can do..." Red Mask mumbled before she set her left hand on her mask. "Heh heh… heh heh heh…"

Just as Masashi, startled by her giggling, was about to ask her whether she was all right, she opened up her arms, and on her countenance was nothing but a winsome smile, as if she had somehow erased all the anger that she had shown the group only a few minutes ago.

"Good day, good men and women! I see that you're all so keen to learn of the Ultimate Phantom Thief's true identity!" she said blithely, ignoring the befuddled faces of her audience. "After all the deception, I can see that I've put it off long enough! Well, I promise you, there'll be no more of that!

"Now, pay attention, as I shall do this only once! I go by Red Mask, but that's only my professional name! My real name is..."

She then took out her Monopad with a flashy hand movement and then turned it on.

"Ah… So… that's your name..." Sister Hikari murmured as she and the others looked at the screen with awe.

Her real name was none other than Kasumi Ayukawa.

For a moment, the others too had been made silent, letting this important piece of information take root in their minds. The name of the phantom thief that could steal many of the world's treasures and had evaded capture all this time was now known to a few strangers that had no connection to her.

"So after long last, you've revealed it!" Haruyuki said, still looking weirdly delighted. "Well, Kasumi, it's swell to make your acquaintance. Once this is all over, I'd like to talk with you some more, if you don't mind."

The girl now known as Kasumi Ayukawa sneered. "You want to do that, even though my true identity is now compromised, and my seemingly ordinary school life will never be the same? You sure are weird!"

"Wh-What is up with your attitude right now?" Faye asked, eyeing her uneasily. "You were angry only a few seconds ago, and now you're acting all cheerily!"

"Oh, that little outburst? Sorry about that! I, uh, get a little restless every now and then!" Kasumi answered as she waved her hand blithely, though her reassurance seemed to put very few at ease.

_I don't know why, but there's something odd going on with her…_ Masashi thought, stupefied. _She sounds so different now, and it sounds pretty fake… At the very least, she seems willing to cooperate with us, so I shouldn't complain about this..._

"Moreover, Red Mask—I mean, Kasumi, now that we know your real name," Masashi said, thinking to set that weird part aside for now, "we can see that your name fits the one on the note perfectly! Your name has 'SU' and 'YUKA' in it!"

"Th-Then… If your name's on the note, then you must be the killer!" Arashi exclaimed as he angrily pointed at her.

"It sure seems that way, doesn't it! Well, I admit, it's my name that's on the note," Kasumi replied, keeping up her smile. "But I guess if you don't know the full picture, you'll think I'm the killer, so I guess it's time to own up to everything!"

"Wh-What?" Masashi stared at her, dumbstruck. "What are you talking about? 'Full picture'?"

"Well, I haven't told you guys what I was _truly_ doing last night, have I?"

"You… were at the Memory Bank last night, weren't you?" Abraham said sternly, who looked as if trying to keep a calm face before the ridiculous girl.

"Hey, you've got it! The whole night jogging thing I said earlier was nothing more than an excuse, so sorry about that!" Kasumi answered as she snapped her fingers. "But all I did was discover the dead body, and that's it!"

"Uh, I think we need far more than that as an answer!" Tanjiro said, eyeing her warily. "Why were you there in the first place?"

"For your information… I got a weird letter yesterday morning," Kasumi answered, who, though sounding a bit serious now, still came off as rather blithe and gleeful. "The letter told me to go to the Memory Bank at 1:00 AM."

"And you followed the letter faithfully, I see," Haruyuki replied.

"Believe you me, I didn't want to go," she said. "But you know, if you were in my shoes and saw your real name on the note, you'd do the same thing, right?"

"Ah… So that's why you were there last night!" Masashi said, beginning to have a fuller picture of last night's events. "Since the writer knew your name, you couldn't very well disobey their bidding. Otherwise, there was the risk that they might reveal your name to the rest of us."

Kasumi nodded. "Anyway… around the given time, I rode one of the boats to the Memory Bank, and I saw only one boat there, which must've been Futaba's. And sure enough, she was the only one there when I headed in! Too bad she'd already been killed, though…"

"What? She was… already dead?" Faye said, eyes widened.

"Yep. And let me tell you, I was very, _very_ spooked!" Kasumi continued, keeping up her oddly blithe tone, even though the subject had become grim. "The weird music playing didn't help at all!"

"Wait… weird music?" Masashi raised his brow.

"Well, I say it's weird, since when I opened the door, it was playing a light piano piece. But when I actually stepped into the room, it suddenly changed into a jazz piece!"

"Huh… I'm pretty sure the Memory Bank doesn't play music," Sorao replied, looking somewhat surprised. "Did you see where it was coming from?"

"Yeah! It was coming from a smallish orb lying nearby," Kasumi answered. "The orb had a fair amount of blood on it, so I guess it must have gotten on the orb when the killing happened!"

_An orb playing music that seems to change for some reason? _Masashi thought. _That description… sounds familiar… Ah!_

"The orb had to be one of the light orbs from the exhibit rooms!" Masashi said. "The orbs definitely had that weird music function!"

"What? That orb was there?" Faye said, giving a confused glance. "That's… rather strange."

The group glanced at one another, befuddled as to what this meant. They had assumed that the killer had taken only the bat out, but it seemed that the orb had something to do with the crime as well.

"Oh, and there were two other things I saw! The note with the dying message, and the long staff lying nearby! It's the same scepter that those statues in the living room hold!" Red Mask said.

"You mean the was-scepter?" Mari said.

_What…? The scepter… was there…?_ Masashi thought, he and many others looking bewildered at her account. As far as he knew, the only remarkable thing about the scepter was that it was about six feet long and that one of its ends was shaped like a hook. From his short experiment with Mari, it was clear that it could not have been wielded as a weapon, so why had it been taken to the Memory Bank?

"More importantly, if you saw the dying message," Abraham said, "why didn't you try to destroy it? It had your name on it, after all."

"W-Well… To be truthful, I was pretty shocked to see my name on it!" Kasumi replied. "I didn't know why Futaba wrote my name of all things. Maybe she thought that I was the killer for some weird reason! My instincts told me to leave the room at once, though."

"And you didn't pick up the note?" Haruyuki asked.

"I thought I had, but after I was back in my room, I realized I hadn't actually put it in my pocket!" Kasumi answered. "I must've been way out of my wits to make such a silly mistake! I didn't notice it at all while running back to my room!"

"And that must've been when Sayua and I saw you…" Tanjiro added.

"Pretty careless of you, don't you think?" Sorao asked relaxedly. "Not only did you fail to destroy the note when you could, but you also didn't notice Tanjiro and Sayua. Man, I've got to say, even though you're the Ultimate Phantom Thief, you're not so intelligent as I thought."

"And why didn't you use your fucking brain and tell us any of this earlier?" Abraham asked.

Kasumi raised her hand. "Well, duh! If I'd told you guys, you would've suspected that I had something to do with it! I didn't want to be connected to the crime in any way, especially since my true identity was involved! So the best thing to do was pretend that I had nothing to do with it! That's why I was hoping that you guys could solve the crime without having to delve into my name."

"That… was pretty spotty reasoning," Masashi said a bit chidingly. "You didn't want to be suspected, but in the end, we ended up figuring out you were connected to the crime. And what you've just revealed to us is very important information, to boot!"

"Important information? More like utter lies."

It was none other than Maiha, who had an incredibly apprehensive look in her eyes.

_Maiha…? What are you…?_ Masashi thought.

"You still haven't proven that you're innocent," Maiha began, her voice lacking any willingness to believe her. "Your tale may sound persuasive to the witless commoners, but there's not a whit of evidence backing it up."

"Wh-_What?_" Kasumi exclaimed, suddenly losing her gladsome tone. "You don't believe me?"

"Of course not. You've been lying to us, so for all we know, this is yet another one of your lies, your tricks, your deceptions," Maiha said. "As expected from a _foul _thief."

The others silenced themselves as they looked at Kasumi, whose expression waxed in its unease. They had been taken in by her tale, but as Maiha pointed out, who was to say that it was true? The possibility now in mind, what little relief Masashi had felt from hearing her witness account was now gone.

"W-Well, how am I supposed to prove I'm not lying?" Kasumi said after a few seconds, trying her best to keep her smile and her cheerful voice.

Maiha, on the other hand, seemed rather unwilling to believe her. "If what you say is true, then you should still have the letter that told you to go to the Memory Bank."

"Y-Yeah, that's right," Faye said, nodding along. "I mean, you have it on you… right?"

Kasumi let out a small gasp as her gladsome expression started to break down. "A-Ah… There's one more thing I should tell you. When I got the letter, it also told me to destroy it as soon as I was done reading it. It said that it was 'dangerous' to keep around, since it needed to be hidden from Monokuma!"

"Hidden from _me?_" Monokuma chortled. "Let me assure you, there's nothing hidden on this ship from your dear captain! I can see everything you do in the bedroom! The dining room! And especially the bathroom!"

"So… did you destroy the note?" Faye asked.

"W-Well, of course I did! I didn't want to disobey the note's instructions!" Kasumi answered, whose voice noticeably had a bit of fear in it, however much her cheerful tone tried to hide it.

It was at that moment that Masashi saw the frown on Maiha's face twitch a bit. Though the ballroom dancer showed a blank expression, her clenched fists suggested that Kasumi's answer had kindled something within her.

"Oh… Well, that's not good," Sorao said, sounding hardly worried for Kasumi. "Looks to me like you don't have anything backing you up here."

"Looks like you shouldn't have done that, dumbass," Abraham said snidely.

"Still… I think Kasumi's telling the truth about what she did last night," Sister Hikari said. "Much as I object to her, well, activities, I feel that she's not lying here."

"Yeah! And besides, why would I kill Futaba, anyway?" Kasumi asked. "I-I didn't bear her any ill will!"

"Wrong! Absolutely wrong!"

Once again, it was Maiha, but her expression startled Masashi, as there was a noticeable trace of anger in her eyes, as if Kasumi had slighted her somehow, and yet Masashi also could sense as if she had been waiting for this moment.

"As we all know, you wish to keep your real identity a secret!" Maiha responded. "So you must've been panicking when you realized that Futaba must've found out what your real name is! And that's when you decided to take measures into your own hands!"

"E-Even so, I'd never kill her!" Kasumi said, her expression now a little panicky. "I-I'm the Ultimate Phantom Thief, not a killer! I make sure that no one ever dies in my heists! All I'm guilty of, truly, is theft—"

"_Do y__ou expect me to believe commoner scum like you?!_" Maiha yelled as she pointed at the thief with great fierceness, and the sudden raise in loudness of her voice made a few of the others gasp. The ballroom dancer's eyes, fixed on the thief, glinted with utter wrath. "You and your ilk will do anything to satisfy your lowly desires and mindlessly badmouth those who work harder than you can ever imagine! And as if that weren't bad enough, you have been rewarded with that sham of a title for being nothing more than a glamorous lawbreaker! The only thing that you care about is you alone, and so murder is something to which you'd gladly resort so as to keep up your vicious lifestyle!"

"Wh-Whoa… M-Maiha's really angry!" Kumi said, hiding behind his teddy bear as if fearing that her voice could somehow hurt him.

"Y-Yeah, wh-what's up with her?" Hikari said.

Haruyuki chuckled as he covered his mouth with his gray scarf. "This one's not so interesting to witness, as it is only a greater showing of what I've already seen from her. Still… there is something about this that makes me but watch."

_Wh-What in the world is going on…?_ Masashi thought, utterly bemused by Maiha's insistence that Kasumi was the killer. Most of the others were confused as well, unsure whether to agree with Maiha or Kasumi.

"Wh-What about you?!" Kasumi said, nervously pointing a finger at her. "You and Haruyuki had my lockpicks, so either of you could've done it!"

"Even so, the dying message has your name on it! You were seen fleeing the scene by two witnesses! You have no evidence to back up your account!" Maiha continued, looking down at her with loathing eyes. "At no point was either of us ever spotted there, so you warrant the most suspicion!"

"A-Ah! Th-That's a good point!" This time, it was Kumi, who had formerly looked unsure as to whom he ought to direct his suspicions at, but now, he looked almost certain that it was Kasumi. "I-I can't think of anyone else but her!"

"Hmm… I'm leaning toward believing she's the killer," Murphy said. "No offense, Kasumi, but you're not exactly trustworthy. You've lied to us a few times already."

"Come on! I'm not lying now!" Kasumi said, her voice slightly quivering. "I swear, this time, I'm telling the whole truth!"

Maiha shook her head, unwillingness to believe her all over her face. "No… I am certain that your tale is nothing but a web of lies that you spun to hide your crime!"

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"You killed her, didn't you?" Maiha said, pointing at the thief. "**In preparation, y****ou grabbed the bat from the exhibit rooms.**"

"I-I did no such thing!" Kasumi insisted, her right fist tightening. "All I did was find the body, and that's the truth!"

"Speaking of that," Sorao said, "when did Kasumi even find Lady Inoshishi's body, anyway?"

"Well, according to the history log," Sister Hikari said, "**Futaba came out of the pod at 1:00 AM exactly.**"

"So **she must've hit her right there and then!**" Maiha said. "With how weak she was, the unfortunate lady stood no chance!"

"Th-Then Kasumi left the room and sailed across the river **in no time!**" Kumi said. "A-After all, Sayua and Tanjiro saw her at exactly 1:00 AM as well!"

"And unbeknown to her, Futaba was still alive at that time," Murphy said. "**In her last moments,** she wrote her name down to tell us who her killer is."

"N-No! You have it all wrong!" Kasumi said pathetically.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): River Boats**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Wait a minute, Kumi. That can't be right," Masashi said. "There's a big problem in that one particular time interval."

Kumi looked confusedly at him. "Huh? What problem? I mean, Kasumi rode on that boat, right?"

"Well, yes, but therein lies the problem," Masashi replied. "I've tested the boats during the investigation, and I can say for certain one thing: the boats are all incredibly slow and take a while to get from one side to the other."

"You mean, there's no way to change the speed?" Faye asked.

Masashi shook his head. "Nope. No buttons at all other than the start button."

"Oh, yeah, the boats really are slow!" Arashi said. "I helped Masashi with his experiment, and I know they take about a minute and a half to get to the other side!"

"But that's the thing! We know that Futaba must've been killed at exactly 1:00 AM," Masashi said. "The history log shows that she left the pod at that time, after all.

"But if Kasumi had killed Futaba at 1:00 AM," Masashi continued, "it would've been 1:01 AM that Sayua and Tanjiro saw her! But they saw her at 1:00 AM _exactly!_"

"_What have you just said?!_" Maiha exclaimed, having winced. "They saw her at that exact time?! Sure you jest!"

"Even I can't fucking believe that!" Abraham said before directing his gaze at the two eyewitnesses. "Are you sure you got the time right?"

"Yeah, the clock's minute hand was definitely still at that minute mark!" Tanjiro replied, looking a bit uneasy from the sudden attention on him. "Even when we looked at the clock again after seeing her... it was still 1:00 AM!"

"Aah!" Sister Hikari widened her eyes. "Then… Kasumi couldn't have killed Futaba!"

Maiha, shock rushing through her face, raised a hand. "Do not be taken in by this false line of logic! It is perfectly possible that she swam through the river to make the trip faster for her!"

"S-Swim through the river?" For some reason, Kasumi grew a little fearful in her expression and her tone. "N-No way! No way I would've swum! No way, no way, _no way!_"

"Besides, I don't think Kasumi could've done this, even if she had wanted to," Mari said, nodding along with an oddly blank expression. "Remember, it's against the rules to swim in the river. Monokuma told us that a few days ago."

"Yep! If she'd tried to swim in the river," Monokuma said, "an alarm would've gone off, and everyone would've heard it!"

"So Kasumi must've crossed the river on the boat, then!" Arashi said.

"Then the clock must've been slow by a minute!" Maiha said, scowling even more. "It would neatly explain away the so-called impossibility!"

"Nope! Sorry to break it to you, but all the clocks here run accurately!" Monokuma replied. "There's no way anyone looking at a clock would get the wrong time!"

Abraham scowled, grinding his teeth and crossing his arms. "But if that's true… then are you saying the fucking dumbass thief is innocent?!"

"It may be hard to believe, but I believe so," Masashi concluded. "Thanks to Sayua's and Tanjiro's presence there last night, we can prove that there's a time discrepancy in her actions if she really is the killer."

"Wow… you must be extraordinarily lucky to have those two prove you innocent," Sorao remarked. "Even I can't believe that Tanjiro's useful for once."

"Ugh… Did you really have to say that…?" Tanjiro mumbled as he sighed.

"Hah! You see?!" Kasumi said, smiling as she spoke in her normal merry voice. "I'm innocent! What I told you guys was nothing but the truth!"

"So Futaba really was dead when you found her?!" Arashi said.

"Yep! And since I didn't stay there that long," Kasumi said, "I'd say that I arrived there and left around 12:59 AM."

"And with the one-minute boat ride," Tanjiro said, "we would then see you at 1:00 AM. So it all makes sense."

"But what about the dying message with your name on it?" Faye asked. "Why would Futaba write your name, then, if you're not the killer?"

"Well, the possibility that the dying message is actually a fake has always been there, but at the time, we had to trust the evidence," Sorao replied. "Now that we know Kasumi's innocent, though, it confirms the message is a fake. Lady Inoshishi never wrote anything down after being struck.

"And I feel sure enough to say that the killer was the one that wrote Kasumi the letter to go to the Memory Bank as well," Sorao continued. "It was all part of their scheme to frame her."

"You mean like how Haruka tried to frame Kumi with the glitter?!" Arashi exclaimed, looking utterly aghast.

"Yep. And don't forget, the killer could've found out Kasumi's name as well," Sorao said. "Lady Inoshishi might've told them, but I think it's likelier that the killer found her Monopad and saw her name. After all, the Monopad was lost for a few hours, right? Any one of us could've discovered the Monopad before Lady Inoshishi."

"So the dying message and the letter to Kasumi were both written by the killer…" Sister Hikari said.

The others were stupefied as well, having realized that they had almost fallen into the same kind of trap twice. Maiha in particular, however, looked more and more upset, her right fist clenched as she scowled, speechless.

_But that's odd… Why Kasumi of all people, then?_ Masashi thought as he thought about the possibility. _I'm pretty certain Sorao's not wrong, but still, I wonder why the killer chose her rather than anyone else…_

"But why bother telling Kasumi to go there?" Mari asked. "Couldn't they have just framed Kasumi without having her go to the Memory Bank?"

Sorao chuckled as he crossed his arms, smiling. "This is only a theory of mine, mind you, but I believe that the killer wanted Kasumi to be aware of her connection to the crime. By inviting her to the Memory Bank and making her see the body and the fake dying message... Kasumi then became aware that her true identity was involved in the case somehow. She'd do anything to hide the connection, since you know, as the Ultimate Phantom Thief, she wouldn't want us to find out who the girl behind the mask is."

"So by actively trying to deny her role in the murder... she unwittingly fell for the killer's trap," Haruyuki added. "She ended up looking incredibly suspicious. If the killer had not bidden her go to the Memory Bank, and had simply put the note with the dying message on the scene, she would appear less suspicious."

"Th-That sure is a pretty complicated way to make me look bad!" Kasumi commented, her expression full of shock at how she had been manipulated.

_And unlike Kumi in the last case, Kasumi actually did something behind our backs..._ Masashi thought. _T__he killer sneakingly pushed her to hide that fact, just to make us suspect her more..._

"Anyway, I can't say that this was all a waste of time, though," Sorao added, smiling and speaking with a calm voice as he gently raised his hands. "Kasumi saw a few important things, but she wasn't going to tell us it because her true identity was connected to the crime. So in a way, the fake dying message helped us figure out what truly happened last night."

"Well, now that you mention it… yeah, that's right!" Arashi said before he beamed giddily. "It wasn't a waste of time after all!"

Haruyuki let out a short chuckle before he raised a finger. "I don't mean to spoil the celebration, but it appears that we have another problem on our hands. You see, if Kasumi truly is innocent, then according to her account, Futaba had already been killed. But how would you explain the history log, then? It shows that her pod was used from 10:35 PM to 1:00 AM."

"Then it must've been the killer or something!" Sayua said. "After all, there's no requirement that it be the owner that could use it, right?"

Monokuma nodded. "All it takes to open up a pod is the password and nothing else! Since I know all your passwords, theoretically, I can go into any of your pods! But I'm not that kind of bear, so you can trust me to leave you alone."

"But Kasumi saw only Futaba's boat as she went there, so the killer was not at the Memory Bank at that time, it seems," Haruyuki responded. "But we know that the killer must've been in the pod, since Futaba was long dead, and so someone had to be inside pretending to be her. How can this be explained?"

"Ah, I've got it!" Kasumi said, smiling. "I see through the killer's trick!"

"Oh? And what is this so-called trick?" Sorao asked.

"Well, if Futaba wasn't killed at 1:00 AM, there was only one time she could've been killed!" she answered with a blithe voice. "She must've been killed around 10:35 PM! The killer was waiting in the Memory Bank, ready to ambush her! After that, the killer went into the pod and pretended to be Futaba!"

"Wait, but haven't we already confirmed there was no one in the Memory Bank before Lady Inoshishi arrived there?" Sorao responded, not at all surprised as if he had expected such a response. "After all, Murphy said all four boats were on his side of the river during his painting session on the fourth deck. That means no boat was on the Memory Bank side, and so no one had to be there, right?"

"And as I said earlier, after I saw her, no one could've followed after her," Murphy added. "So that possibility out, too."

"Exactly! It _looks_ as if the killer hadn't been at the Memory Bank!" Kasumi said. "But the killer managed to find a way to go there and create that illusion! And it has something to do with the boat!"

"The boat? What do you mean?" Mari asked.

"It's simple! The boats all move automatically, right?" Kasumi replied as she raised a finger. "So once the killer arrived at the Memory Bank, all they needed to do… was press the button and jump back onto the platform! That way, the boat would sail back to the other side on its own!"

"Huh, that certainly would fool me!" Murphy said. "I sure wasn't thinking about how the boats were all automatic."

"But… there's one problem," Masashi said. "Arashi and I thought about that as well, but we concluded it wouldn't have worked. The boat moves way too quickly in the beginning to make a steady jump to the platform. I'm pretty sure the killer would've fallen into the water."

"Really? If you ask me, I can definitely make that jump without a hitch!" Kasumi said with a haughty voice.

"Uh, yeah, but what about us normal folk?" Sorao said. "We can't be as nimble as you, you know."

"Couldn't the killer have simply pressed the button while standing on the platform, then?" Tanjiro asked. "All the killer needed to do was reach out their hand and press the button."

"Sorry, but we tried that as well," Masashi replied. "The button's way too far from reach."

"Really?" Mari said. "Hey, Captain Monokuma. What are the dimensions of the boat, anyway?"

"Well, for your information, all the boats are about fifteen feet long and have a beam width of about six feet," Monokuma answered. "Now, while I'm at it, let me tell you about _my_ dimensions—"

"Yeah, six feet is too much," Sorao interrupted, looking keen to ignore Monokuma's off-topic talk. "None of us can reach out to the button with our hands while standing on the platform."

_Wait a minute... Six feet?_ Masashi thought upon realizing something. _Could it be…?_

* * *

**Here it is! The first half of the trial! Sorry for the longer than usual wait, but I had a few things to take care of in my life. Also, I have to admit, it took me a long time to finish it, since I had trouble deciding how things would run and how the pacing ought to go. This part of the trial ended up being a bit longer than I had originally thought, so hopefully, this isn't too much to handle!**

**Anyway, with what you've seen so far, you've definitely been given enough information to figure everything out. Which character do you think is the killer, and how exactly do you think that character pulled it off?**


	23. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (9)

The group of students was now puzzled by Haruyuki's observation that it would seem impossible that the killer had been at the Memory Bank. It was clear that Kasumi's account of last night's events was right, but if it was true, then it led to a contradiction. After all, Futaba must have already been killed before 1:00 AM, and yet the history log of her pod showed that it had been used from 10:35 PM to that time.

The obvious explanation was that it was the killer that had used it to fake the time of death, but there was one problem: Kasumi had seen only one boat by the Memory Bank while riding the boat there. That boat had been Futaba's, and since Murphy had seen her riding to the Memory Bank by herself, the Memory Bank could have only had Futaba inside when Kasumi had arrived. The solution to this problem was that the killer had gone to the Memory Bank side and then pressed the button on their own boat, exploiting the boat's automatic movement.

_The button's six feet away from the platform…_ Masashi thought. _Normally, one can't reach it with one's own hands… unless..._

Sayua waved her hand flippantly. "Well, if you ask me, the answer's obvious!"

"Oh? Care to tell us, then?" Sorao asked, looking contemplative.

The cheerleader smirked. "Since it's impossible to press the button while on the platform, the thief chick must've made a mistake and seen two boats! The killer was inside the pod when she went in, and so the killer simply left after she skedaddled!"

"No way I made a mistake!" Kasumi said in protest. "As a keen-eyed phantom thief, I assure you that I saw only one boat!"

"Huh… Well, that's troubling," Mari said. "If we can't figure out what really happened in the Memory Bank before Kasumi arrived, then I don't think we can narrow down which of us could be the culprit—"

"Uh, Kumi, what are you doing?" Sister Hikari asked, eyeing him uneasily as the storyteller seemed to be quickly scribbling something in his book.

Kumi looked back sheepishly at the good nun as he shut his book. "O-Oh, sorry, Sister Hikari! See, a really good idea for my next tale popped into my head, and I had to write it down! A-And besides… I don't think I can help much. I'm so confused by this whole thing!"

"Don't worry, dude. We all know that you're easily confused," Sorao remarked, smirking.

"W-Wait a minute, d-didn't you say th-that earlier?" Hikari asked.

"Uh, no, I'm pretty sure I didn't. You must've misremembered it, man," Sorao answered. "Anyway, it's the boat that presents a problem, so we should think about it a little harder, shouldn't we?"

"Maybe if we think about it some more, it'll all become clear!" Arashi answered.

_All right, then…_ Masashi thought. _Time to show what the killer used for the trick!_

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"First of all, it's clear that the killer couldn't have jumped off the boat, right?" Sorao said.

"Yep, I'm certain of it!" Arashi answered. "**The boat's way too wide to make the jump!**"

"And the only way to make the boat move," Faye said, "is **to press the red button.**"

"Then how did the killer manage to press it?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Maybe the killer **used some kind of tool that could reach the button,**" Mari suggested. "That way, the killer didn't need to be on the boat at all to press it."

"But if that were true, it had to be something six feet or longer," Faye pointed out.

"Maybe they **found a way to slow down the boat before jumping off!**" Kumi said. "Maybe they used some kind of slowing magic!"

"Oh, slowing magic's a thing? Guess that explains the state of your brain," Sayua remarked, to which Kumi showed a confused reaction.

"Maybe **there's another way to get to the Memory Bank** we don't know of," Faye suggested. "Maybe the killer didn't need to use the boats at all…"

"None of those sound right, if you ask me," Murphy muttered.

"Well, if you have any better ideas, you'd better start saying them," Abraham replied scornfully.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Agree): Was-scepter**

**I agree with that!**

"Mari, you're right about that!" Masashi said. "There was indeed something that the killer could've used to press the button while standing on the platform!"

"Wh-What? What was it?" Hikari asked.

"It must've been the was-scepter, one of the scepters in the palace's living room," Masashi answered. "The scepter is definitely more than six feet long!"

"Oh, that's right!" Faye said, eyes widened. "With its length, the obstacle that the boat's width made would be no problem anymore!"

"And come to think of it, didn't Kasumi say that she'd seen a scepter lying on the floor in the Memory Bank?!" Arashi said.

"That's right! I'm definitely not mistaken about what I saw! There was a scepter!" Kasumi let out a short laugh. "I should've known that's what the killer did! I completely fell for it! Man, I have to admit, the killer's pretty clever."

"I-I'm surprised you're p-praising the k-killer," Hikari said, glowering. "I-I mean, d-didn't the killer try to f-frame you?"

"Hey, I give credit where it's due!" Kasumi replied blithely. "As a phantom thief, I naturally like to see creativity!"

Kumi tilted his head, his expression confused. "Um, I don't really get it. Are you saying that the scepter had some kind of magic that the killer used?"

"Oh, what Masashi means is that the killer used the scepter itself, not whatever magic it has," Sister Hikari explained. "The scepter is long enough to reach the button, so the killer, standing on the platform, pressed it therewith."

"Then the boat, moving automatically, reached the other side, where the stairs were…" Tanjiro finished. "So there were then four boats on that side of the river, which matches what Murphy saw."

"So that's how the killer managed to fool me and Futaba?" Murphy said, his eyes full of bewilderment. "That's… actually pretty simple. I should've thought about that earlier!"

Most of the others murmured in surprise and shock at the ease of the trick that the killer had used to fool Futaba. The killer had exploited the boats' automatic function so as to create the illusion that no one had been at the Memory Bank, so that Futaba might be lured to a false sense of security. Stepwise, the killer's scheme had become clearer and clearer, and it seemed that the group was nearer to the killer's identity.

"That can't be right. There's one important thing you've forgotten."

But the one who dissented was none other than Maiha, who looked hardly convinced. Rather, she gave the others a cold chiding stare.

"What is it, Maiha?" Masashi asked. "Do you have a problem with my theory?"

"Of course I do." She brushed off a lock of her red hair. "It sounds plausible at first, and it certainly would explain the scepter's presence in the Memory Bank at the time. But if what you say is true, then one crucial problem emerges."

"Huh? What problem do you mean?" Masashi said.

"Think about the history log of Futaba's pod," Maiha said, giving Masashi a slightly annoyed look. "It shows that it was used from 10:35 PM to 1:00 AM. Why is that the case?"

Masashi thought about it for a few seconds.

"Well… as we've shown earlier, the killer wanted to frame Kasumi for the crime," Masashi answered, "and they needed to be sure that Kasumi arrived at the scene and saw Futaba's body."

"Trying to make sure of that while in another room would've been risky, I imagine," Sorao added, "so hiding in the Memory Bank was the best option for the killer."

"And that's why the killer decided to use her pod," Masashi said. "Since there's no indication on the outside that shows that it's currently used, Kasumi couldn't tell whether anyone was in Futaba's pod. That's why the killer used it as a hiding spot. It also helped to make us think that Futaba was killed at 1:00 AM."

"Man, the killer had a twofold use for that, huh?" Sorao said.

"Then in other words, once the killer was sure that the foolhardy thief had witnessed the scene," Maiha replied, "they had no need to stay at the Memory Bank anymore. Is that what you claim?"

"That sounds about right," Masashi said, nodding along. "I… still don't see a problem with it."

Maiha scoffed as she fiddled with a lock of her hair. "Then let me ask you this, commoner: _how_ could the killer tell when the thief entered the room?"

"Huh? How?" Masashi said, confused. "The killer simply looked outside the pod—"

"_Impossible!_" Maiha exclaimed excitedly, as if expecting his answer. "Whenever the pod is used, all that the user inside can see is utter darkness. It's impossible to glance outside and see what is going on in the room."

"Ah, that's true!" Arashi replied. "When you put it that way, it really seems to have been impossible!"

"Yeah, I don't want to admit it, but she has a point here…" Murphy said. "If hiding in the Memory Bank had been the killer's plan, it wouldn't have worked."

"And not only that," Maiha said, smirking as she saw the others beginning to agree with her, "but the history log also shows that the one inside the pod left it at exactly 1:00 AM. It must've been after the killer had sensed that the coast was clear, the foolish thief having fled the scene."

"So in other words…" Mari said, glancing upwards, "if what Masashi says is true, how did the killer know when Kasumi entered and left the room, when the killer couldn't see her?"

It was then that Masashi widened his eyes, understanding her objection. "Ah! Th-Then… that's why you think my theory isn't correct?"

"Indeed. And therefore, the idea that the killer was hiding in the Memory Bank is ludicrous," Maiha said. "And since the killer was not hiding in the Memory Bank, the killer must have used another trick instead, one that they could do while far away."

"That… sounds reasonable," Faye said. "If what Masashi said were true, then it would mean that the killer couldn't tell when Kasumi would enter and leave. But we know that that's wrong."

"Looks like it to me," Abraham said.

"Yeah… Sorry, Masashi, but I think she has a point here!" Arashi said.

"Nah, I think Masashi's right on this one!" Kasumi added. "Maybe there's something we've overlooked! If the killer managed to disguise their presence with the boats, maybe the killer used some other way to tell when I entered the Memory Bank and left!"

"Maybe the evil warlock used some kind of spell!" Kumi added. "Maybe that's how they could pull off this part of their scheme!"

"Uh, I don't think so, but setting that aside… I agree with Masashi on this one," Tanjiro said. "I think the killer found a way to bypass that obstacle."

Murphy sighed as he lowered his head. "Then I guess that we're all split on this matter—"

"_**There's nothing that despair can't overcome!**_"

Monokuma growled as he raised his paws, feigning fury. "I can't believe it! You guys are split once again! And here I was, thinking that we had to transform these trial grounds only once!"

"Oh, come on, you didn't truly think that," Sorao said, shrugging casually. "You've been waiting for this moment, haven't you?"

"Nope! You know how long these trials take? Hours!" Monokuma answered, feigning outrage. "All these transformations make things even longer!"

"So then couldn't you just refrain from doing the whole thing again?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Well, I _could_... but it wouldn't really feel _proper_, if you catch my drift," Monokuma said as he crossed his arms. "So I may as well do it again."

_Well… at least we can resolve our issue that way,_ Masashi thought. _Now, I'll have to show that the killer must've been at the Memory Bank, or else we'll be led in the wrong direction!_

"Sure… Let's do the thing you're totally against, captain," Sorao said, smirking. "Up we go, then."

Like last time, Monokuma took out a key after a circular panel had appeared before him. After it was inserted, all the students' podiums and Monokuma's throne then rose toward the ceiling. Once the fifteen participants answered the question shown on their podiums, they were then split into two sides, and so began the debate.

* * *

**Debate Scrum**

**Question: After killing Futaba, where was the killer?**

**Elsewhere: Maiha, Sorao, Abraham, Faye, Murphy, Hikari, Arashi**

**Memory Bank: Masashi, Kasumi, Tanjiro, Sayua, Kumi, Sister Hikari, Haruyuki, Mari**

"Could the killer not have left the Memory Bank around **ten thirty-five**?" Faye asked.

"No, the history log of Futaba's pod shows that the killer must've been there at **ten thirty-five**," Tanjiro replied.

"Is it not possible to fool the **pod **into thinking that someone is in it?" Sorao asked.

"The **pod **only works if someone wears the headset inside, so I don't think so," Sister Hikari answered.

"Then how did the killer know when Kasumi would arrive and leave?! The pod blocks off all **sight**!" Arashi said.

"Must the killer have used **sight**? Maybe the killer used sound instead," Haruyuki said.

"I-Isn't the pod **soundproof**, th-though?" Hikari said.

"Monokuma said that the pods aren't **soundproof**, so anyone inside could've heard something odd from outside," Mari said.

"But there was no strange **sound **playing at that time, was there?" Murphy asked.

"Wrong! There was **sound **coming from that light orb lying nearby!" Kasumi countered.

"But how the fuck could the killer have used the **orb **to their advantage?" Abraham said.

"The **orb **changes the music if the number of people in the room changes, so the killer must've used the change in music as a signal!" Masashi replied.

"But isn't it impossible for the killer to **suddenly **stop the memory they were watching in Futaba's pod?!" Faye said.

"The killer could **suddenly **stop watching the memory with the pod's 'abruptly end' function! It's even shown in the history log!" Sayua said.

"Even if that is all true, how did the killer leave the scene? Their **boat **was on the other side of the river," Maiha said.

"The killer could've ridden on Lady Futaba's **boat **and then did the trick from earlier to make it go back to the Memory Bank!" Kumi said.

**This is our answer!**

It was clear that the explanation given by Masashi's side made far more sense and was possible, so no one said a word in protest as the podiums and Monokuma's throne returned to where they usually were.

"I think it's clear that the light orb was used in the killer's trick," Masashi said. "Does everyone else agree?"

"Yeah, I've no doubt about it," Sorao said, nodding along. "All that talking sure persuaded me, man."

Faye sighed. "It certainly explains a whole lot…"

Maiha said nothing as she glanced to the side, frowning. To some extent, Masashi felt glad at such a sight, seeing the greatest gainsayer to his theory no longer able to raise any more opposition.

"Uh, could someone explain the killer's trick fully, please?!" Arashi said, raising his hand. "I'm having a tough time trying to picture it all!"

"Y-Yeah, th-there are a lot of d-details to take in…" Hikari said.

"Well, no harm in trying to summarize what we've deduced so far," Masashi said. "All right… First, the killer arrived at the fourth deck. At that point, there were only four boats on the side of the river by the stairs. The killer then rode to the Memory Bank on one of the boats."

"Then the killer… used the scepter to make the boat go back to the other side, yes?" Sister Hikari said.

Masashi nodded. "That's right. That way, only four boats would be on the other side of the river, which would make it look as if there were no one in the Memory Bank. Afterwards, the killer simply hid in the Memory Bank and waited for Futaba to come. When she did a few minutes before 10:35 PM… the killer ambushed her and killed her."

"And afterwards…" Mari said, setting a finger on her chin. "The killer took the note on Futaba's person, wrote Kasumi's name on it, and turned on the light orb's music function as part of the scheme to frame her. Then the killer entered the pod and went through Futaba's memories."

"Then when Kasumi arrived at 12:59 AM, the music change alerted the killer and made them abruptly end the memory they were watching," Masashi said. "After Kasumi fled the scene, the music changed again, and the killer waited for a moment before getting out of the pod at 1:00 AM exactly."

"And then finally, the killer checked the scene to see whether there was anything needed to be done. After all, Kasumi might have messed with the scene somehow. Once that was done, the killer left," Haruyuki said. "Taking the scepter, the light orb, and the murder weapon, the killer rode back to the other side on Futaba's boat. Then to move the boat back to the Memory Bank side, the killer simply needed to use the same trick as before."

"And thus completes the trick…" Sorao chuckled as he touched one of his red hair's locks. "Well, that sure was a doozy. But I guess the scheme was almost successful. After all, we almost concluded that Kasumi was the killer."

"All right, then… now what?!" Arashi said, fists clenched. "I mean, we figured out how the killer pulled it off, but we're still no closer to figuring out which of us did it!"

"What, is it not clear, you addle-headed hothead?"

It was Maiha, who seemed to have regained her composure, since she now gave her usual condescending glance at the others, her arms crossed.

"If the killer hid in the Memory Bank and killed Futaba around 10:35 PM," she said, "then it means that those who were _not_ at the Memory Bank at that time must be innocent."

"It appears so," Abraham said.

"Then one thing can be concluded," Maiha continued as she raised a finger. "I am, without a doubt, innocent. After all, at that time, Murphy and I stumbled upon each other and headed back to our rooms."

"Oh, yeah, that's right," Murphy said. "Since I saw her in the flesh, she couldn't have been at the Memory Bank."

"Wait a minute… in the debate earlier, weren't you arguing against Masashi's position?" Tanjiro said. "Doesn't that mean you were arguing against a theory that would prove you innocent?"

"And?" Maiha said, tilting his head upwards. "In the class trial, I seek to root out the killer and find the truth of this case, even if it means arguing against something that removes me as a suspect. I assure you that unlike some of you, I have integrity."

"Integrity? Oh, please…" Abraham mumbled.

_Huh, so her outburst against Kasumi earlier wasn't made because she was the culprit?_ Masashi thought, dumbstruck. _She was simply that certain that she had done it…_

"In any case, we can safely deem Maiha to be innocent," Sister Hikari said. "And we know that Kasumi couldn't have done it, too…"

Kumi clapped his hands, smiling. "Well done, then! I'm glad we've proven for sure that you two are not guilty!"

"Where was your fucking applause when I was proven innocent?" Abraham asked disgruntledly.

Sorao let out a chuckle. "Well, then, I think it's pretty clear. After all, if Kasumi and Maiha are innocent… there should be one suspect left, right?"

"One suspect…?" Faye asked uneasily. "But who?"

_Ah!_ Masashi thought as he saw which of them Faye was referring to. _That's right! That person also had a lockpick, so it must be…!_

Masashi then glanced at the one whom he had in mind.

"Haruyuki… You're the only one left!"

"_Hmm?_" the art critic said as the others glared at him. His eyes were slightly widened as if he had only noticed something small fly right before him. "On what grounds do you accuse me?"

"Remember how we narrowed down our suspects earlier?" Masashi said. "Because the bat had blood on it, we know that the killer must've taken it out of the second exhibit room. But only three people could've accessed it at any time: you, Maiha, and Kasumi. Each of you had a lockpick at the time of the murder."

"And since Kasumi and Maiha have been shown to be innocent…" Sister Hikari said. "Naturally, you're the only suspect left."

"Th-Then it's you!" Kumi said, pointing at him with a quivering hand. "Y-You're the one that killed Lady Futaba!"

Haruyuki said nothing at first, many of the others appearing to take his silence as a sign that he was guilty. Masashi himself wondered what was going on in the man's mind; up to this point, he had shown a calm countenance, the weird outburst from earlier being excluded. But was that truly how he felt? Might it be that it was but a facade that he had put up to appear confident? With how unperturbed he appeared, Masashi felt some doubt in his assertion that he was the only one left.

_But that's what the evidence suggests now…_ Masashi thought as he tried to reassure himself. _I can't let his behavior dissuade me!_

Eventually, a small chuckle came out of the man's mouth, which made some of the others look at him with confusion and dread.

"Wh-What's so goddamn funny?!" Sayua said.

"Nothing much, I assure you," Haruyuki said as his chuckling stopped. "I was simply relishing the moment of being _the_ suspect of the case. It truly is interesting to be looked at with such wary eyes."

"You know, you could show a bit more emotion at a time like this," Sorao said, smiling. "Don't you even feel a tad worried, man?"

"Not at all. Why ought I to feel worried about a misguided accusation?"

"What…? 'Misguided'?" Tanjiro said.

"What a load of bullshit!" Abraham added. "You've got to be bluffing. You know you're done for, so you're trying to make us think you're innocent with that attitude of yours."

Haruyuki clicked his tongue. "I wonder how long it will take you to see that I am innocent. Or perhaps you need a little push in the right direction, I wonder."

"If you're innocent, you could just tell us why you think so…" Mari pointed out.

"But that would be much less _interesting_ to see," Haruyuki countered. "I would rather see how you react when the realization kicks in."

_What is up with him…?_ Masashi thought, bewildered. _Why is he speaking like that as if he were uninvolved with all this?_

In any case, whether he were innocent or guilty, Masashi had to take a good look at his reasoning and see whether he was right. Even though many of the others already seemed convinced of his guilt, Masashi had to remind himself that it was the evidence and not his personal reactions that mattered more.

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"Let me put it this way," Haruyuki began. "If I had been the killer, **I would have had to go to the Memory Bank before Futaba did, yes?**"

"That's right," Sorao said. "What's your point?"

"Well, if I had gone to the Memory Bank," Haruyuki replied, "**wouldn't Murphy have spotted me?** He was there at the fourth deck."

"True, I was there to do my painting for some time…" Murphy answered. "**But I was there only from 9:00 to 10:30 PM.**"

"Then Haruyuki must've simply gone **before Murphy went to the fourth deck!**" Faye added. "That's why Murphy never saw him."

"Or **maybe he managed to sneak past Sir Murphy somehow!**" Kumi said. "Maybe he used invisibility magic! **Or maybe he got some fairies to distract Sir Murphy!**"

"Come on, I'd never be distracted by something like that," Murphy replied, looking a bit irked by Kumi's last suggestion.

"Moreover, unlike me, **he doesn't have an alibi around 10:35 PM,**" Maiha said, "so he could've been hiding in the Memory Bank at that time."

"S-Seems pretty clear to me he's the killer…" Hikari said.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Bumper Car Games**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Actually… no, Haruyuki couldn't have gone to the fourth deck before Murphy," Masashi said. "After all, he has an alibi during that point."

"Wh-What?" Faye said, looking startled. "A-Are you sure about that?"

"I am. You don't know this, Faye, since you felt a bit under the weather last night," Masashi replied, "but Haruyuki was with us when we played with the bumper cars."

Haruyuki let out a short chuckle, sounding deeply amused. "Indeed I was. I wondered when one of you would mention it."

"Oh, yeah, you guys were doing that," Sorao said. "Too bad I also couldn't make it. I felt a bit unwell, you see. So Haruyuki truly was there that time?"

"B-But isn't it possible that Haruyuki headed to the Memory Bank after the game was over?" Faye asked, looking at the others uneasily. "He doesn't have an alibi for the rest of the night, right?"

"That is true… but the problem is how long we played with the bumper cars," Masashi replied. "We started around 8:20 PM and ended around 9:30 PM. Haruyuki was with us in the bumper cars room the whole time!"

"Ah!" Arashi gasped. "Then… that means…!"

"There's no way Haruyuki could've gone to the Memory Bank afterwards without being spotted!" Kasumi concluded. "Haruyuki has to be innocent!"

"Wh-What?!" Abraham cried out as he tightened a fist. "Murphy! Are you sure you didn't see him?"

Murphy shook his head. "I'm pretty sure I would've noticed if he'd tried to go there. And even if he'd somehow slipped under my sight, the boat's sound would have alerted me."

"I can't believe it…" Faye mumbled as she hung her head, utterly dismayed.

Haruyuki chuckled again. "It was somewhat amusing to see the realization kick in. Rest assured, had you not realized it, I would have told you eventually."

"Either way, it's clear that he's innocent, I think," Murphy said. "So what now? I can't think of anyone else."

"Well, we just need to go over who had access to that room!" Sayua answered. "Simple as that!"

Tanjiro looked at her meekly. "But, Sayua, that's the problem. There _is_ no one else that had access last night."

"What?!" the president of Team Tomi exclaimed, staring at her dismayed secretary in shock. "But if that's true, it means the crime's impossible!"

"Nope, it's not impossible!" Monokuma added. "One of you definitely did it, I can assure you!"

Most of the group glanced at one another in bemusement for a few seconds, wondering what the next step was. Masashi could not think of any other leads to talk about, either; how the killer had killed Futaba was clear, but narrowing down which of them could have accessed the weapon had led them to a dead end instead.

"I-If Haruyuki didn't do it," Hikari said, "then the three who c-could've gone into the exhibit r-room are all c-clear!"

"If we're stuck, then we ought to go with our gut!" Arashi yelled excitedly. "We should say aloud which of us we think is the most suspicious and vote for that person!"

"What, you've got a fucking death wish?" Abraham retorted. "Maybe we should think twice about Kasumi and see whether she's _truly_ innocent."

Kumi groaned as he clutched his head. "I… I don't get any of this! Sister Hikari, do you have any ideas?!"

"S-Sorry, but nothing comes to mind…" the nun answered. "I don't think we have any other leads to chase."

"Well… there is _one_ thing left."

Amid the confusion that had arisen since the group had found itself in a deadlock, the one clear voice belonged to Sorao, who had managed to keep his composure and showed no tension on neither his face nor his shoulders. At once, all looked at him.

_Sorao…? What are you doing?_ Masashi thought, realizing that the musician was among the few that appeared confused.

"You see, I was thinking about the clues again," Sorao explained. "And one thing strikes me as odd."

"Odd? What is it?" Murphy asked.

"I was thinking about the bat, the murder weapon, you know," Sorao answered as he opened up his arms a little.

_The… murder weapon?_

Of all the things that Masashi thought that Sorao would have a problem with, this was far from the top of the list. After all, it had already been made clear what the murder weapon was in the class trial's beginning.

"I don't see anything odd with it, though," Faye said.

"Are you sure? The location's odd, for one," Sorao answered. "Let me ask you this: why didn't the killer simply leave the bat in the Memory Bank? They instead went through the hassle of putting it back in the second exhibit room."

"The killer wanted to hide the fact that the bat was used, I bet," Abraham answered. "If we couldn't find the murder weapon, it would make figuring everything out much harder."

"It certainly appears that way, and it's backed up by the fact that the Monokuma File was suspiciously vague about what the murder weapon was," Haruyuki replied, keeping his calm attitude.

"And yet, we found the murder weapon anyway. How?" Sorao asked, crossing his arms.

"The blood," Masashi answered, unsure as to what Sorao was trying to say. "A small amount of it was left on the bat. Using that, we could still tell that it had been used in the crime."

"Why are you asking us these obvious questions?!" Arashi yelled, eyeing him angrily. "It's pointless—"

"Isn't it weird, though?" Sorao said, undeterred by Arashi's anger. "The killer wanted to hide the fact that the bat was used as the murder weapon. But there's a small but noticeable amount of blood on the bat, which led us to find out that it was the murder weapon. Don't those two claims contradict each other?"

"_Ah!_" Faye gasped as her eyes widened, her hands shaking. "Th-That's right…! Now that I think about it, it doesn't make any sense at all!"

Many of the others murmured in shock as well, not having reached such a seemingly obvious conclusion until now. Masashi himself could hardly believe it; he remembered thinking about why the killer might have taken the bat back to the second exhibit room, but it had never occurred to him that it was that very deed that should have put his understanding of the murder weapon into question.

"Hang on a minute! Don't you think there's a simpler explanation?" Sayua said. "Isn't it possible that the killer simply forgot to wipe away the blood because they were in a hurry to get rid of the evidence?"

"What makes you think the killer was in a hurry?" Sorao replied, arms crossed. "The crime took place at nighttime, and as far as the killer knew, no one other than Kasumi was up."

"And the killer already foresaw that the foolhardy thief, wanting to hide her connection to the crime, would not alert the others of her discovery," Maiha added. "Therefore, the killer felt that they had more than enough time to make sure that everything should be how they wanted it to be."

"Then it's extremely unlikely that the killer missed the blood on the bat…" Mari concluded.

"So the killer… deliberately left the blood there?" Sister Hikari asked. "But that doesn't make any sense, does it? We still found out that the bat was the murder weapon."

"Right. It was the blood that led us to this conclusion," Sorao answered. "But, you know, maybe we ought to take a closer look at the blood. The next question to ask is: _when_ did the blood get on the weapon?"

"When? Hah, that's easy!" Sayua answered. "It got on there when the killer whacked Futaba with it, duh! The killer simply returned the bat back to the second exhibit room after being done with framing that thief chick!"

As if expecting that answer, however, Sorao cracked a little smile and touched a few fringes of his hair. "Well, that's the natural conclusion to make… But I'd like to remind you guys what Kasumi said earlier."

* * *

_Kasumi nodded. "Anyway… around the given time, I rode one of the boats to the Memory Bank, and I saw only one boat there, which must've been Futaba's. And sure enough, she was the only one there when I headed in! Too bad she'd already been killed, though…"_

_"What? She was… already dead?" Faye said, eyes widened._

_"Yep. And let me tell you, I was very, very spooked!" Kasumi continued, keeping up her oddly blithe tone, even though the subject had become grim. "The weird music playing didn't help at all!"_

_"Wait… weird music?" Masashi raised his brow._

_"Well, I say it's weird, since when I opened the door, it was playing a light piano piece. But when I actually stepped into the room, it suddenly changed into a jazz piece!"_

_"Huh… I'm pretty sure the Memory Bank doesn't play music," Sorao replied, looking somewhat surprised. "Did you see where it was coming from?"_

_"Yeah! It was coming from a smallish orb lying nearby," Kasumi answered. "The orb had a fair amount of blood on it, so I guess it must have gotten on the orb when the killing happened!"_

* * *

_"Oh, and there were two other things I saw! The note with the dying message, and the long staff lying nearby! It's the same scepter that those statues in the living room hold!" Red Mask said._

_"You mean the was-scepter?" Mari said._

* * *

"Wait a minute…" Masashi said once he noticed something weird in her account. "Kasumi, you said that you had seen three things by the body: the light orb, the note with your name on it, and the was-scepter, right?"

"Uh, that's right!" Kasumi answered. "I took a quick look around the room, so I'm absolutely sure I didn't miss anything!"

"And yet something very important is missing in your account…" Sorao said before he cracked a little smile. "Where was the bat, the murder weapon?"

"_Aah!_" Abraham exclaimed, grinding his teeth. "Th-That's…!"

"Oh!" Kasumi gasped. "Oh, yeah, now that I think about it… I never saw such a thing! I can't believe I overlooked that!"

"Well, clearly the killer took it back to the second exhibit room right after killing Futaba," Faye suggested, looking none too impressed by the revelation. "After all, there was no need to keep it."

"I doubt so," Sorao replied. "Murphy saw Lady Inoshishi around 10:30 PM, and the killer definitely was at the Memory Bank around 10:35 PM, given her pod's history log."

"And given the amount of time it would take to go back and forth between the second and fourth decks, the amount of time to go through the exhibit rooms and lock them up, and the amount of time each boat ride would take…" Mari finished for him. "It seems unreasonable to think that the killer managed to put the bat back in the second exhibit room in a timespan of at most five minutes."

"And I'm pretty sure the killer would have no reason to hide the bat, since it's not as if they had expected Kasumi to do anything with it," Sorao said. "It's why they didn't bother hiding the was-scepter as well."

"So if that can't be the reason that the bat wasn't there, why did the bat disappear?" Sister Hikari asked.

_Wait a minute…_ Masashi thought. _Given that, there's only one possibility it could be!_

"The bat... was never taken to the Memory Bank in the first place," Masashi answered. "It never 'disappeared' because it was never there to begin with!"

"_Wh-What?!_" Arashi exclaimed.

"Th-That can't be right!" Faye interjected at once. "If the bat was never taken to the Memory Bank, then how did the killer murder Futaba with it?"

"Yeah, even I don't know of any kind of magic that lets one do that!" Kumi commented.

"Well, that's just it. It's impossible for the killer to have killed Lady Inoshishi with a bat that they didn't have," Sorao answered bluntly, his expression suddenly turned serious. "The killer used something else instead."

Nearly the whole class gasped, faces mixed with shock and unbelief.

"Th-The bat's not the true murder weapon?!" Arashi exclaimed.

"I-I don't get this at all!" Kumi said. "I-I can't tell what's real and what's not anymore!"

"Well, you've been like that already, so nothing's changed for you, really," Sayua commented.

"But what about the blood? How did it get on the bat in the first place?" Murphy asked.

Sorao sighed. "It's possible that sometime after the scheme was done, the killer collected some of Lady Inoshishi's blood in a container and put it on the bat. That way, it'd look as if the bat had been used as the murder weapon."

"Well... I guess the fact that the bat was missing from the scene supports the idea that the blood was faked as well…" Sister Hikari said. "Still… if the bat's not the true murder weapon, then why did the killer go all the way to make it look as if it were?"

"Hang on. We can't go ahead and talk about the reason, when we don't even know what the 'true murder weapon' even is!" Faye protested.

"Rather insistent, aren't you?" Sorao chuckled as he flicked a fringe of his red hair. "But I agree. We can't find out the reason unless we know what the killer truly used to kill Lady Inoshishi."

_The true murder weapon… What could it be?_ Masashi thought as all became ready for the next debate. _And how is it connected to the true culprit's identity?_

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"Maybe the murder weapon was **an outside item all along?**" Sister Hikari suggested.

"Sorry, but that can't be it. We'd already confiscated everything that could've been used as a weapon," Abraham replied.

"So even if we accept this theory that the bat wasn't used…" Murphy said. "**The weapon still must've come from the exhibit rooms.**"

"Yeah, no doubt about it," Faye said, nodding along.

"Thinking about it some more, I think it's not so hard to figure out," Mari added. "Since we've proven that **the killer couldn't have returned the weapon right after killing Futaba…**"

"The true murder weapon should have still been in the Memory Bank when I visited it last night!" Kasumi replied. "**But I don't think I saw anything** that could've been used as a murder weapon."

"Looks to me like the whole theory's a lot of crock," Abraham said, frowning.

"**So maybe the bat truly was the murder weapon!**" Arashi said.

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Light Orb**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Actually, Kasumi, I think you saw the murder weapon," Masashi replied, "but you simply misinterpreted it as something else."

"Wh-What? What are you talking about?" Kasumi replied, tilting her head a little.

"Well… earlier, you said something rather interesting," Masashi answered. "You said that the light orb was covered in a fair amount of blood."

Kasumi gasped, apparently seeing what he was getting at. "H-Hey, wasn't it stained from the aftermath of the murder?"

"I thought so as well, but once it was pointed out that you had not once seen the bat," Masashi said, "I think the blood got on the light orb from a different cause!"

"You mean… the light orb was _used_ as the murder weapon?" Murphy said, eyes widened. "But I thought the killer needed the light orb because of its music function."

"Yeah, finding two extremely different uses for the same thing… seems unconventional to say the least," Sorao said. "Hey, Faye, Abraham. How durable is the light orb?"

"I-It's pretty durable, actually… even if it can't withstand falls from great heights," Faye answered uneasily. "I can imagine someone using it as a weapon without leaving a mark on it…"

"Though if you ask me, it would've been much better to use the bat instead," Abraham said. "The light orb's pretty limited in range, whereas the bat is rather long."

"Yeah, the more I think about it, the more it seems weird to use the light orb as a weapon," Tanjiro said. "It's almost as if the killer had been forced to kill Futaba with the light orb."

_Wait… forced?_ Masashi thought.

"That would have been a rather risky move, would it not?" Haruyuki said. "The light orb, though usable, is not that effective a weapon. Of course, the killer managed to kill Futaba with it, but for some reason, the killer had not been able to use the bat instead."

"Thence comes the discrepancy in our hands…" Maiha said. "Ordinarily, both the light orb and the bat would have been present in the scene when the foolish thief walked in. And yet only the former was seen instead."

"Maybe it has something to do with the light orbs' availability," Murphy suggested. "Aren't light orbs available in both exhibit rooms?"

"Yes, that's right," Haruyuki answered. "There are four in the first exhibit room, and four in the second exhibit room."

_Hmm… So theoretically, the killer didn't need to go to the second exhibit room for a light orb…_ Masashi thought.

"Perhaps the killer wanted to take both things," Mari suggested, "but for some reason could take only the light orb."

"I don't see what's so hard about walking out the door with both, though," Sayua said.

_Why couldn't the killer use the bat?_ Masashi thought. _Couldn't the killer have taken the bat out, at least?_

"Maybe the killer couldn't take the bat since they couldn't return it to the room later," Tanjiro suggested. "The killer realized that and so decided not to use the bat."

"Hmm... That's pretty weird, don't you think?" Mari asked. "If the killer could take the bat, it follows that the killer could return the bat, doesn't it?"

"I think that we need to clarify the access that the killer had to the exhibit rooms," Haruyuki said. "Otherwise, we shall not have a better picture of the killer's movements."

"All right, then... Where shall we begin?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Let's think about the reason that Kasumi, Maiha, and I were suspected in the first place," the art critic said.

"The ground for suspicion was that we each had lockpicks last night," Maiha said, "whence we had unfettered access to the exhibit rooms."

"Are we sure there's no other way to get into those rooms?" Tanjiro asked.

"I'm damn sure. Faye and I checked the rooms thoroughly," Abraham answered, "and not a single trace of a secret passageway was found."

"And the only other thing connected the exhibit rooms to an outside place besides the front entrance is the vent," Sorao said, "but as we showed earlier, because of the vent rule, the killer couldn't have gone through that."

"That's why the killer must've used a lockpick, or so we thought," Murphy said.

"Hmm… With how things look, it looks like the killer had access to the room… and at the same time, didn't have access," Mari remarked.

"What the hell does that mean?!" Sayua said, frowning as she pointed at Mari. "That makes no sense at all!"

"Y-Yeah... I can't think of a-any other w-way to th-think about it," Hikari said. "Th-The killer h-had access or n-no access at all."

_Is that true, though?_ Masashi thought as he looked down a bit. _It is reasonable to think that, but maybe there's another part about the killer's access we're not accounting for… Something that the killer's managed to hide from us until now. If we figure out what it is, maybe we'll be able to find a new suspect!_

* * *

**Hangman's Gambit**

**Question: What kind of access to the exhibit rooms did the killer have?**

?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?

_First of all, the killer didn't have a lockpick. None of the people who had lockpicks last night could have killed Futaba._

T-?-?-?-?-?-?-?-?

_But the killer must've had access, since they did something with the bat, were it using it as a murder weapon or planting blood on it!_

T-E-M-?-?-?-?-?-?

_Maybe… the killer managed to get in at one point, even when they normally couldn't?_

T-E-M-P-O-?-?-?-?

_Yeah, maybe they had access at one point, but because of the circumstances, lost it afterwards!_

T-E-M-P-O-R-A-?-?

_And if they didn't have permanent access, that might have something to do with the weird discrepancy in the killer's abilities!_

T-E-M-P-O-R-A-R-Y

_So the killer could've been limited in their access to the exhibit rooms!_

TEMPORARY

"That's it!" Masashi exclaimed. "The killer had access… but it doesn't mean that they could've gone into the exhibit rooms at any time!"

"Wh-What? What the hell are you getting at?" Abraham asked.

"We kept thinking that the killer either had full access to the room or no access at all," Masashi explained, "but I think there has been a third option all along; namely, the killer could've gotten an opportunity to be in there for a short while."

"An opportunity?" Sister Hikari said.

"Well, it certainly resolves the contradiction of the killer's access," Haruyuki answered. "The killer can't be someone with full access, but it can't also be someone with no access."

"So logically, the killer must've had a different kind of access…" Mari answered, her body swaying a little. "That the killer had access at one point but lost it later isn't something we've talked about, I guess."

"But what does that even mean?" Murphy asked. "How did the killer have 'temporary access' in the first place? I can't imagine a situation like that."

"Yeah, neither can I," Faye said. "No offense, but it all sounds pretty abstract and fanciful."

"Then let's think about it," Sorao said. "The killer was someone who ordinarily could not access the second exhibit room. But somehow, they managed to get inside."

"Well, the lockpicks are out, so the killer didn't use a tool to break inside, I think!" Arashi answered. "Uh, that's right, right?!"

"It sure sounds like it to me," Sayua said. "Still, that doesn't really help much."

"If the killer couldn't have broken in with a lockpick," Mari suggested, "then maybe they got someone to help them instead."

"Y-You mean, an accomplice?" Hikari asked.

"No… accomplices are out, remember? According to the rules, accomplices get no benefits, unlike the blackened," Mari said, looking upwards a bit with a dazed expression. "Um… How should I put this? Maybe they got the person to help them without letting that person be aware of it."

"Oh, I get it! It's like what I did for a heist a while ago!" It was Kasumi, speaking with an ever so blithesome voice. "That one time, I was going to take a certain piece from an art museum. But before I carried out the heist, I thought to plant some traps in some rooms that would be important, but would be heavily guarded during the heist."

"Oh? And what did you do next?" Haruyuki asked, eyes glinting.

"Long story short, during a public visit, while in disguise as a reporter," Kasumi said, "I gave one of the guards an excuse to let me into those rooms, and during that time, I secretly slipped in the traps. Those guards sure didn't see it coming when those smoke traps and flashy fireworks activated!"

"What an utterly loathsome tale, as one expects," Maiha commented, not at all amused that she must listen to her.

"A-And you used fireworks for your heist?!" Arashi said, mouth agape. "H-How dare you use such a beloved thing for your crimes?! That is _not_ what fireworks are meant for!"

"Hey, now, as part of my policy, I returned the art piece once news got out of my successful heist, so in the end, nothing of worth was lost!" Kasumi answered.

"Uh, that doesn't really excuse what you did, you know," Tanjiro pointed out.

"All right, so what the fuck was the point of that story?" Abraham asked, clenching a fist as he frowned and glared at the lady thief with loathing eyes.

"What, you don't get it?" Kasumi giggled. "Simply put, maybe the killer needed to trick someone so as to get access into the exhibit rooms!"

"Trick… someone?" Masashi said.

"If that theory is true," Haruyuki said, "then it means that the person whom the killer tricked was important in accessing the exhibit rooms."

"But how was that person important?" Kumi asked. "I-I still don't really get it!"

"Well, there's one thing we should ask ourselves," Sorao said as he touched his red hair, chuckling. "Is there anyone connected to the exhibit rooms that the killer could even trick in the first place?"

_Is there such a person?_ Masashi thought. _Given how the exhibit rooms work—Ah!_

Masashi gasped upon recalling a certain fact about the doors, shock rushing through his face, his eyes widened.

_I see now…! If this is true, then it means… the culprit... has to be that person!_ Masashi thought. _And that person's claim of innocence no longer holds any water!_

"Uh, Masashi, are you all right?" Sister Hikari asked. "You look a bit pale."

"Oh… Well… Guys, I think I've figured out who the killer is," Masashi answered.

"What? Are you sure?" Murphy asked.

"You'd better think about it carefully!" Sayua said. "If you get it wrong, I swear I'll tear you a new one!"

"Well? Which one of us do you have in mind?" Sorao asked, showing no tension at all.

"I-It's not me, I swear!" Hikari said.

The longer the others looked at him with bated breath, the uneasier Masashi felt. It was simple to say the name, but having gone through the class trial once beforehand, he knew well enough what it meant after he named the one that the group was to condemn. It was all needful for the innocent students' survivors, and yet the task's needfulness did not make the unrighteousness go away.

_Still... I have to say_ it, Masashi thought. _If I want all my memories of Keiko back..._ _If I want everything to go back to normal...__ then I must say it!_

Masashi took in one last breath before he spoke and pointed at the culprit.

"The culprit is you, Abraham."

"_Wh-WHAT?!_"

Nearly all the others exclaimed at Masashi's answer, eyes widened, mouths agape. Abraham, the most bewildered of them all, simply ground his teeth as he looked at Masashi with a shocked expression, showing no signs of wrath.

"This… This is a bad joke, right?" Abraham uttered once he appeared to have regained his wits. "You can't be serious with your goddamn accusation."

"Y-Yeah! I thought we'd already proven him innocent, Sir Masashi!" Kumi said.

"Same. If anything, I thought he was going to accuse that pastry chick," Sayua said.

"Wait, do you mean me?" Faye said, pointing at herself uneasily.

"H-How dare you think that Miss Nirigiri could've done it!" Arashi yelled. "There's no way she would ever kill anyone!"

Masashi understood the bewilderment; after all, Abraham must not have expected him to go after him, especially when this was the second time that he had been accused. But this time, Masashi was certain that he had seen through his trick at last, and so he stood steadfast in his accusation.

"No, Abraham. This is no joke at all," Masashi answered. "You're definitely the culprit."

"You… You… _You goddamn idiot!_" Abraham said, one eye twitching in anger. "How the hell did you come to accuse me?! Wasn't the topic about how the culprit tricked someone important?! I don't see what I have to do with this!"

"Abraham… I'm pretty sure you're well aware of this," Masashi said. "You were alone at one point in the exhibit rooms at one point, and I believe you had used a little trickery."

* * *

_"But one funny thing happened," Faye said. "After I locked the door, Abraham said he had forgotten something inside."_

_"It was one of the pens that I usually hold on my belt," Abraham answered, eyeing the pastry cook with unfriendliness as well. "It must've fallen off during the inspection. Once I had her unlock the door, I headed back inside by myself and took about three minutes to find it."_

_"And you were standing in the hallway outside the exhibit rooms the whole time, Faye?" Masashi asked._

_"Yep. He insisted that I stay outside, and I was perfectly fine with it," Faye said. "After all, it was his pen, so it was hardly any of my business."_

* * *

"Oh!" Faye gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. "Th-That's right... Abraham was alone at that moment! And I believed the reason he'd given me!"

"Gah!" Abraham groaned as he winced a little, and he took a second or two to recover.

"I knew there was something suspicious going on with that asshole waiter!" Sayua said.

"And not only that," Mari said, "but if I remember correctly, Abraham's whereabouts after the nightly inspection can't be verified by anyone. That means that unlike Maiha and Haruyuki, he could've been pulled off the scheme to frame Kasumi."

"_Ah__! You goddamn...!_" Abraham exclaimed as he winced, grinding his teeth.

Sorao chuckled. "Looks like Abraham's a viable suspect again! Funny how things turn out."

"Have you anything to say in your defense?" Maiha asked. "It seems that the commoner was right on the mark in his accusation."

Abraham scoffed as he recovered, standing upright as he set his arms on his hips. "It's true that I was by myself in the exhibit rooms... So what do you say that I did next, then? You can't fucking vote for me just because of that, can you?"

"Well, if we go back to what we talked about earlier," Sorao said, "we figured out that the murder weapon was not the bat but the light orb."

"So if that's true," Mari said, "it means that Abraham never took the bat out. Instead, he smuggled the light orb out."

"Hey, so if Abraham's the killer," Murphy said, "why didn't he go for the bat, then? Why did he have to use the light orb as the murder weapon?"

_Why did he do that?_ Masashi thought. _Well... Given all the information we have right now..._

"I'm not exactly sure of that, too," Masashi answered, "but I think that if we show that Abraham could smuggle the light orb out, the reason may become clear."

"You think I smuggled the damn orb out of the room?! Well, I refuse to accept this farce of an accusation!" Abraham said, his face stern. "Your argument is riddled with so many holes that even I am surprised by your damn stupidity!"

"Oh? Such as?" Haruyuki said.

"Why, the blood on the bat, of course!" Abraham replied, crossing his arms as he nodded with an indignant look. "Your accusation implies that I used the light orb as the true murder weapon, which means that I must've also planted Futaba's blood on the bat, as you argued earlier! But that was fucking impossible for me!"

"Why do you say that?" Masashi asked.

"When Faye and I went to the exhibit rooms this morning, we saw the bat and the blood on it," Abraham explained. "The blood was long dry, which means that it had been put there hours ago."

"But the only time when Abraham had unfettered access to the exhibit rooms was last night's inspection, after he told Faye he needed to look for a pen," Mari pointed out.

"But that leads to a contradiction," Maiha said. "At that time, Futaba was still alive, and so he could not have planted Futaba's blood on the bat."

"Exactly!" Abraham said, quickly raising a finger. "So the only way to plant the blood is to do it after the murder, but that's impossible!"

"Yeah, and it's not as if Abraham had had a container that already had Futaba's blood in it," Murphy said.

Kumi excitedly raised a hand, drawing out sighs from a few others. "Oh, I know! Maybe Sir Abraham can control vampires—"

"_Shut up,_" Maiha said, her expression showing that she would brook no tomfoolery.

"A-All right…" Kumi whimpered as he looked down at his book of tales.

_Was it truly impossible for Abraham to plant Futaba's blood?_ Masashi thought. _Given that the only time when he could've done it was last night's inspection…_

"Abraham… I agree with you," Masashi said. "I don't think you had Futaba's blood with you, so clearly, it was impossible to plant her blood on the bat."

Abraham widened his eyes in surprise. "Oh? Have you realized at last that you were acting like an utter dumbass with your accusation?"

_Sorry, Abraham, but that's not how things will work out for you,_ Masashi thought, having expected Abraham to try to weasel his way out of this like that.

"Abraham… just because I said you couldn't have planted Futaba's blood," he answered, "it doesn't mean you couldn't have faked the murder weapon."

"Wh-What?!" Abraham exclaimed. "But how?! How could I plant blood on the bat when I didn't have any of Futaba's blood in the first place?!"

The answer was surprisingly obvious, now that it was clear that Abraham could not have used Futaba's blood.

"About that…" Masashi replied. "Whose blood is on the bat, really?"

"_Ah!_" Abraham exclaimed, having realized what Masashi was getting up, his appearance beginning to look ruffled. "Y-You can't be saying…"

"That the blood belongs to someone else? Indeed, that's what I claim," Masashi said.

Many of the others gasped.

"But we already know for sure it was Futaba's!" Arashi said. "She's the only victim in this case!"

"Ah, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the blood belongs to her." This time, it was Sorao, who seemed to have understood Masashi's point already. "If the killer wanted to fool us into thinking that the bat was the murder weapon… then it's not necessary to use Lady Inoshishi's blood, don't you think? We have no forensic equipment at our disposal, after all, so we can't tell the difference, anyway."

"B-But didn't Captain Monokuma s-say it was h-hers?" Hikari asked.

"Hey, now, don't you go putting words in my mouth!" Monokuma replied. "I definitely don't do that for you behind your backs, so I'm utterly aghast that you would claim I said something I never said! Hmph!"

"That you specifically mentioned 'behind your backs' when none of us suggested so makes me think otherwise…" Tanjiro commented.

"Anyway, that was straight from the horse's mouth," Masashi said. "That the blood is Futaba's has been only our assumption all this time."

"B-But whose blood did S-Sir Abraham use, th-then?!" Kumi asked, his face growing pale. The topic of blood must have been unpleasant enough to stir up such a reaction.

_It's not as if Abraham had had a hard time getting_ _blood_... Masashi thought. _The most obvious answer is..._

"Well… since we can't tell whose blood it is," Masashi answered, "isn't it possible that the blood on the bat is his?"

"Wh-_What?!_" Faye exclaimed. "Masashi, you can't be serious!"

"Why not, though?" Mari said. "While inside the exhibit rooms by himself, couldn't Abraham have planted his own blood on it?"

"You mean, he had a container of his blood readied?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Hah, nice try, but that couldn't be done," Abraham said. "If I'd hidden a container of blood on my person, I would've had to move _very_ carefully during the whole time I was with Faye to avoid the possibility that it might spill onto my clothes."

"But as far as I could tell, Abraham was moving normally," Faye said. "There wasn't exactly any carefulness in his movements."

"And he couldn't have explained why he secretly had a container of blood on him if the blood had happened to spill..." Mari said. "It would've been too risky, so I don't think he used a container."

"But, you know, is a container needed for that stuff?" Sorao asked, opening up his arms a little. "After all... the human body's already a good enough container, don't you think?"

"But wouldn't Abraham have needed a tool to open up a wound on his body?" Sister Hikari asked. "I doubt that he could've simply made one with his bare hands."

Abraham scoffed, albeit quivering. "Th-That's right. I would've needed something sharp to make a wound! But when Faye searched me with the metal detector later, it showed that I carried no such thing!"

_Hmm… I don't think Abraham's wrong here,_ Masashi thought. _If__ he didn't use a tool from outside, he must've used something else, then!_

"It was still possible for Abraham," Masashi responded. "After all… aren't there knives in the second exhibit room? I'm pretty sure I saw some during the investigation, and you mentioned it as well earlier, Faye."

* * *

_"Abraham and I tried to look for the murder weapon, but the only place that had anything usable as a blunt instrument was, well…" She scratched her cheek. "It was the second exhibit room. It was only natural, since a few days ago, we two had put away all items deemed dangerous in that room. Things like knives and ropes are stowed in there now."_

* * *

"_Ah!_" Faye exclaimed, eyes greatly widened. "Th-That's right…! So… it was possible…!"

"But how did Abraham then close up the wound?" Tanjiro asked. "Wouldn't there be a lot more blood if he hadn't been able to do that?"

"Oh, I know!" This time, it was Arashi, who seemed particularly keen to answer the question. "Abraham could've secretly taken some bandages with him! There are plenty in the shop, after all! I know because I got some during the investigation!"

"And bandages aren't made of metal, so obviously, his bandaged wound wouldn't have been noticed by Faye's metal detector," Sorao said.

"_Argh!_" Abraham let out as the grip that his crossed arms had on his clothes tightened.

"So if Masashi's theory is right," Mari said, "then Abraham should have a cut somewhere on his body."

"N-No… Th-That isn't right at all!" Abraham protested. "Th-The cut on my arm is—_Grk!_"

"Oh, so you indeed have a cut on your arm," Haruyuki said, chuckling. "It seems that Masashi's theory is not so groundless anymore."

"Let me finish, you fucking idiot!" Abraham replied. "I got this cut a while ago, and it still hasn't healed. There's no way you can prove otherwise, so shut up about it already!"

However flimsy the excuse might be, he was right that there was no way to prove that he must have made the cut himself. But the fact that Abraham could no longer gainsay the theory that he had planted his own blood on the bat was enough to show that he had lost one of his defenses.

"But how did he get the light orb out in the first place?!" Arashi exclaimed. "There's no way he could've gotten it past Miss Nirigiri! She had the metal detector with her!"

"Yeah, and even if it's small, it's not _that_ small," Faye said. "I would've spotted it on his person at once."

"True… Abraham couldn't have gotten anything past you," Sorao answered. "But you know, what makes you think he needed to try that path? After all, isn't there another way to smuggle the bat out?"

_Hmm… Thinking about the layout of the exhibit_ rooms, Masashi thought, I_ can think of only one thing!_

"Abraham must've used the vent to smuggle the bat out," Masashi answered. "The vent is connected to the Memory Bank, so he could've slid the bat through the passageway to get it past Faye!"

"Ah!" Abraham gasped as he covered his mouth with his hand in surprise. "Y-You… You can't be…!"

"Aha! See? I was right all along!" Sayua said, smiling as she nodded her head. "I knew that the asshole waiter had used the vent as part of his scheme!"

"But, Sayua, you said that he must've done it by crawling through the vent," Tanjiro pointed out. "That was pretty different from what Abraham had truly done—"

"Shut up! And I was on the right track, anyway, so it still counted!" Sayua said, which dismayed her meek secretary.

"S-So Sir Abraham… really did it?" Kumi said, sniveling. "I-I knew he was a bit mean, but I thought…"

Masashi sighed. "Sorry, Kumi, but it seems pretty clear to me that only Abraham could have done it. He had the opportunity to smuggle the light orb out."

"Y-You think that's enough to prove me guilty?!" Abraham said, clutching his black tie. "For your information… there's another fucking good reason why I can't have done it!"

* * *

**Nonstop Debate**

"Even if I'd planted my blood on the bat," Abraham began, "I couldn't have smuggled the light orb out!"

"But you had the opportunity to do it, didn't you?" Murphy asked.

"And you could've used the vent in the first exhibit room," Mari said. "It's connected to the Memory Bank, so you could've **used it to get the light orb past Faye.**"

"Yep. He could've rolled it through the vent like a bowling ball…" Sorao said, smiling casually.

"But it's fucking impossible!" Abraham retorted. "The light orb's durable, yes, but **if dropped at great heights, it'll break.**"

"Yeah, that's what Captain Monokuma told us a while ago," Faye said.

"The two horizontal passageways of the vent are connected by a twenty-foot vertical passageway," Mari said. "So if the ball was rolled down the vent, **it must've fallen through that height.**"

"Oh! And the orb definitely would've been broken!" Sister Hikari said.

"Exactly!" Abraham said as he raised a finger. "And there is **nothing I could've used to prevent that!**"

"And with a broken orb, his scheme to frame Kasumi wouldn't have worked…" Tanjiro said.

"As far as I can tell," Faye said, "**all the orbs show no damages**, so Abraham must be right!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen (Refute): Silver Thread**

**No, that's wrong!**

"Nice try, Abraham, but you're wrong," Masashi said. "You definitely could've prevented the light orb from breaking when you rolled it into the vent."

"Wh-_What?!_ Bullshit!" Abraham clenched his fist tighter. "Where's the proof?!"

"Well, earlier, Sister Hikari noticed something missing from the arts and crafts room," Masashi replied. "She said that she had found a container that was missing a significant amount of silver thread!"

"A-And?!" Abraham replied as he shot Masashi a loathing glance. "What does that have to do with fucking anything?!"

"I think there's only one way you could use the thread with the orb," Masashi said, looking back at him sternly. "You took some of that thread and hid it on your person before the inspection. Thread of that kind should be pretty easy to hide on your body.

"Then once you were alone in the exhibit rooms, you wrapped the orb securely with part of the thread," he continued. "That way, when you rolled it into the vent… with the remaining strand of the thread, you could slowly lower the orb down the vent! The thread was durable, so you knew that it wouldn't snap!"

"_Argh!_" Abraham exclaimed as he started, eyes widened. "Y-You…!"

"Wow, that actually makes a whole lot of sense…" Sorao said. "Guess the whole problem of his being unable to smuggle the orb out is now moot."

"Wait, but how did Sir Abraham know when the orb was at the bottom of the vent?" Kumi asked. "Did he use some kind of sight magic, or did he get a fairy to help him with that?"

"Well, if the orb were still hanging in the air at any point, the thread would move once Abraham let it go," Sorao said.

"So once he felt the thread move no more," Maiha said, "he could tell that the orb had successfully been smuggled through the vertical vent."

"Hey… that reminds me," Murphy said, "Which room did he take the orb from? There are orbs in both exhibit rooms, after all."

_Hmm… Which room would Abraham take the light orb from?_ Masashi thought. _Given that he would want to avoid as much risk as possible…_

"He took one of the light orbs from the second exhibit room," Masashi answered. "Only he has the key to the second exhibit room, and so even if Faye had decided to go back to the first exhibit room later without his knowledge, she couldn't have noticed the orb's disappearance in the other room."

"Y-Yeah… That's right," Faye said. "And for your information, I didn't go back there after the nightly inspection! I was busy resting in my room!"

Masashi could see that much of the group appeared to be in agreement with him on how Abraham could have smuggled the light orb out of the room. Seeing the waiter's face, he was certain that he was getting nearer and nearer to the truth, and eventually, he would make him yield and admit to his misdeed.

"I think it's pretty clear what happened," Masashi said. "In the short time that Abraham was by himself in the exhibit rooms, he planted his blood on the bat and covered the wound with bandages he had secretly brought. And to prevent the orb from breaking, he used the thread hidden on his person to safely lower the orb down the vent. That was all he needed to do—"

"_**Stop fucking around with your bullshit!**_"

Abraham tightened his grip on his black tie, pointing at Masashi angrily with the other hand. "I must admit, you do a pretty good job spinning up that little tale in a few minutes. But you should know that there's another reason why this whole accusation of smuggling is fucking full of shit!"

"A-Another reason?" Masashi said, confused.

"Oh, yes, and once you hear it, no one hear will believe any of the shit spewing out of your goddamn mouth!" Abraham said. "Now listen well!"

* * *

**Rebuttal Showdown: Abraham Zargari**

"To begin with, the structure of the vents made it impossible to smuggle anything out!" Abraham began.

"The vent in the first exhibit room is horizontal and about five feet long, as is the vent in the Memory Bank.

"And both vents are connected to a tall vertical vent.

"I admit, I could've gotten the orb through the horizontal vent on the exhibit room's side and made it go down the vertical vent safely.

"But that's about fucking it!

"It would've still been stuck at the other end of the lower horizontal vent!

"It couldn't have moved on its own!"

"True, if nothing else had been done, the light orb would've been stuck there," Masashi said. "But doesn't that mean that you found a way to get it out of there later?"

"Impossible... Impossible!" Abraham replied.

"**Because of the vent rule,** I couldn't have crawled through the vent to get it out!

"And **there's no way I somehow used the thread on the orb!**

"And there was **nothing else that I could've used** to get back the orb!

"And if you think I somehow made it move on its own…

"**That couldn't have been done as well!**"

"Now admit already that your stupid little accusation was wrong!"

**Truth Bullet Chosen: Was-scepter**

**I'll cut through your words!**

"No, that's wrong, Abraham," Masashi responded. "There was a way to get the bat and the light orb once you had safely lowered it to the vent at the Memory Bank side."

Abraham scowled, grinding his teeth. "Hah! You bluff!"

Masashi shook his head. "Are you sure? After all, you say that the orb would've been too far away to get. But didn't we talk about a similar problem earlier in the trial?"

"Oh!" Sister Hikari gasped. "It was the part when the killer, as part of the murder scheme, had to press the button on the boat! The button was about six feet away from the platform, and so we figured out that the killer used the was-scepter."

"Exactly," Masashi said. "So we've already shown that reaching things six feet away wasn't a problem for the killer."

"Wait a minute… Are you saying that Abraham used the was-scepter to get the orb out of the vent as well?" Murphy asked.

"Well, would you look at that!" Sorao said. "Abraham found two uses for the same item. That's pretty clever of him, isn't it? And not to mention he did the same for the light orb!"

"B-But that doesn't make any sense!" Abraham responded. "Sure, the scepter could reach the orb, but pushing it out would've been another problem! It couldn't reach to the back of the orb and push it toward the vent opening!"

"Are you sure about that?" Masashi asked. "If the scepter were simply a six-foot pole, then I'd agree with you… But the scepter has something in particular that made it possible to push it!"

"Ah, I think I get what Masashi's talking about," Mari said. "One of the scepter's ends is shaped like a hook. So Abraham could've reached to the back of the orb and pushed it out."

"_Argh!_" Abraham exclaimed as sweat dripped down his brow. "You… You…!"

"But if that's true," Sister Hikari, "then when did he do that?"

"I reckon he had fetched the scepter and had gone to the Memory Bank with it after the nightly inspection," Masashi said. "He got the orb out of the vent with the scepter's help, and he used the scepter to pull off the trick with the boat."

"And that," Sorao said, "explains why Kasumi saw the light orb and the was-scepter, but not the bat."

"W-Wow! That was pretty creative on Abraham's part!" Kasumi said, looking a little bewildered. "I never would've guessed it! He sure is pretty cunning for a waiter!"

The others murmured in awe as Abraham's scheme had been exposed at last. Many of them looked certain that he was now the killer; Faye, in particular, showed a mix of amazement and shock, most likely because Abraham had managed to fool her.

"Y-You… You… You think you've won? Well, you're wrong!" Abraham replied.

"Huh? You're still not giving up?" Sayua asked.

"Of course not! My point from before still stands, even if the item you say I've smuggled is different now!" Abraham began. "When Faye and I went to the exhibit rooms this morning, none of the light orbs were missing! If I'd been the killer, I must've used some way to put the orb back inside! But that's impossible, since I needed Faye's key to get back into the exhibit rooms beforehand!"

_Ah!_ Masashi thought. _That's right... He made that argument way early on in the trial as well...!_

"O-Oh, yeah!" Arashi said, mouth agape. "Even if he managed to get the light orb out, I don't think there was a way to put it back in the exhibit room!"

Abraham chuckled as he sneered. "Exactly. That's why the accusation against me is obviously—"

"Ah, that argument… I was waiting for when you would bring it up."

It was none other than Sorao, who had spoken coolly, his posture and expression casual and carefree.

_S-Sorao...? Wh-What are you doing?_ Masashi thought, many of the others growing confused as well.

"You were waiting for my argument? What the hell are you talking about?" Abraham asked, looking at him with an irked expression.

"I mean… it's pretty odd, don't you think?" Sorao replied. "Remember what your first argument was after Masashi showed us why we should suspect you again?"

* * *

_"You think I smuggled the damn orb out of the room?! Well, I refuse to accept this farce of an accusation!" Abraham said, his face stern. "Your argument is riddled with so many holes that even I am surprised by your damn stupidity!"_

_"Oh? Such as?" Haruyuki said._

_"Why, the blood on the bat, of course!" Abraham replied, crossing his arms as he nodded with an indignant look. "Your accusation implies that I used the light orb as the true murder weapon, which means that I must've also planted Futaba's blood on the bat, as you argued earlier! But that was fucking impossible for me!"_

* * *

"Don't you think it's odd?" Sorao asked. "He made that argument in particular, when he could've just pointed out it would've been impossible to put the light orb back if he had smuggled it out."

Maiha widened his eyes. "I… must admit that that is rather strange behavior."

"Y-You… What the fuck are you getting at?!" Abraham demanded as he gripped his tie again.

It was then that Sorao put a finger near his lips, chuckling a rather gleeful chuckle.

"You knew that if you made that argument right away, we would be much, much nearer to the truth than you would like," Sorao said, eyeing him amusedly. "That is why you tried to waste our time with persnickety arguments about the light orb's breaking, the vent's length, and whatnot. That's the truth, isn't it?"

"Shut up! _Shut the fuck up right now, goddamn smartass!_" Abraham yelled, his fist shaking, though whether it shook from anger or from fear, Masashi could not tell.

"I-I don't get what's going on!" Kumi said. "Wh-What's Sir Sorao trying to say?"

Haruyuki chuckled as he wagged a finger. "Ah, you don't understand his point? Then let me explain it in terms that you can understand.

"Imagine that there is a dragon, and we are knights to slay him," the art critic said, which captured the storyteller's attention at once. "The dragon can use three spells, from A to C. In the beginning of the battle, the dragon uses Spell A only, and that is enough to stop us from hurting him."

"Spell A... The argument that the killer must've used a lockpick, right?" Tanjiro said. Abraham looked as if he wanted to stop the analogy, but he said nothing as he simply clutched his tie and tightened his other fist.

"Exactly. But we knights manage to break through Spell A later," Haruyuki continued. "What do you think the dragon does next? Assume that you know that Spell B is a powerful spell that the dragon can use only if he cannot use Spell A, and Spell C is a weak but nonetheless annoying spell to deal with."

"Um... Use Spell B?" Kumi said. "I don't see why he would go with Spell C, anyway."

"That is what you think the dragon would do next," Haruyuki said. "But here's a surprise: he doesn't use Spell B. He uses Spell C again and again until he can't. Why?"

"Hmm... Maybe... Spell B is costly in some way?" Murphy said. "I'd only go for Spell C if I knew that I couldn't recover somehow from Spell B."

Haruyuki chuckled. "Precisely. In this case, let's say that if Spell B is used, an opening to the dragon's heart is exposed, which gives us an opportunity to kill the dragon."

"Spell B... is Abraham's argument that he couldn't have taken the light orb back to the second exhibit room," Masashi said. "And Spell C... is all the other arguments that he threw at us."

"Oh! I get it now! It makes sense!" Kumi said, clapping his hands.

"But, uh, what's the opening to the dragon's heart meant to be?" Arashi asked.

Now it was Sorao that chuckled. "You don't get it? The opening to the heart... is the lie in Abraham's argument, of course."

"Wh-What?! Lie?!" Abraham exclaimed. "B-Bullshit! There is no lie in my argument! It truly is impossible for me to have put the light orb back in the second exhibit room!"

"Oh, oh, I know!" Kumi said, raising his hand excitedly. "Maybe you actually put the orb back into the room this morning! But as part of your trick, you hid the orb with some kind of spell to make it invisible! That's how Lady Faye didn't see you with the orb!"

"Enough of your goddamn bullshit already!" Abraham yelled as he slammed his fist on his podium. "You wasted our fucking time by making those other idiots give you a stupid-ass analogy, so shut the fuck up, you goddamn worthless shit-for-brains!"

_Wait a minute… I think Kumi's on to something here!_ Masashi thought. _Obviously, there was no magic involved, but there didn't need to be!_

"No, I think Kumi has a point here," Masashi said. "Now that I think about it, there was only one opportunity when you could've put the orb back into the room: this morning's inspection!"

"Wh-What?!" Abraham exclaimed.

"Faye, you said that after you guys headed inside," Masashi said, "you were busy turning on the light orbs in the first exhibit room."

Faye gasped. "Why, that's right! While I was doing that, Abraham had already gone inside! He had some time before I went there!"

"So I got it right! Hooray, then!" Kumi said. "We're one step closer to figuring out how Sir Abraham tricked us all!"

"But I still don't see how Abraham is wrong," Murphy said. "When we still thought that the bat had been smuggled out, he pointed out that it was impossible to hide the bat on his person. Isn't it the same for the light orb?"

"True… it would've been downright impossible to hide the bat from Faye," Haruyuki said.

Sorao flicked a fringe of his hair. "But you know... doesn't that sound related to a certain issue we had earlier? You know, the reason why the killer could've taken the bat... but instead went for the light orb."

"Oh!" Sister Hikari exclaimed. "A-Are you saying that...?"

"Yep. When Abraham first made the argument about not being able to put the bat back in the room... he was absolutely right," Sorao answered. "But when he made the same argument with the light orb... this time, he lied. Why? There's one main difference between the light orb and the bat, besides their functionality."

_One main difference...? Ah!_ Masashi thought, nearly starting upon the realization. _So that's it! That's why Abraham didn't take the bat at all!_

"It's the size," Masashi answered at once. "The light orb is much smaller than the bat, and so Abraham was able to smuggle the orb back into the second exhibit room."

Abraham scoffed as he waved his hand dismissively. "But I wasn't seen holding the orb, fucking maggots! If you're suggesting that I somehow hid the orb from Faye, then I ask you: _how?!_"

_Think, Masashi, think!_ Masashi thought, feeling rather excited as he sensed that the trial was near its end. _Given the circumstances in which Abraham could've done it… how did he pull off the last step of his scheme? He didn't use the size alone... He must've used something to help him!_

* * *

**Hangman's Gambit**

**Question: When Abraham and Faye went to the exhibit rooms this morning, what did Abraham use to smuggle in the light orb in his possession?**

?-?-?-?-?-?

_Let's see here… Why did the two go to the exhibit rooms in the first place? Oh, right, they needed to transport the rations that Futaba had requested._

B-?-?-?-?-?

_Ah! The rations were many cans of food, and so they couldn't simply hold them with their hands!_

B-A-?-?-?-?

_Yeah, that's right! Both Abraham and Faye used baskets to hold in the rations!_

B-A-S-K-?-?

_The baskets had lids on them, so Abraham could've put the orb in the basket and hidden it in his cans of food!_

B-A-S-K-E-T

_And since the baskets can hold in about fifteen cans of food, I reckon Abraham's basket could've carried the orb!_

BASKET

"That's it!" Masashi said as he looked him in the eye. "You must've hidden the orb in your basket of rations!"

"_What have you just said?!_" Abraham exclaimed, fright apparent in his eyes.

"You and Faye headed there this morning to move the cans of food that Monokuma had delivered earlier," Masashi explained. "You said so as well during the investigation."

* * *

_"But that's not all," Abraham then added. "Around 6:30 this morning, I woke up and headed over to the dining room, where the thirty cans of food and ten gallons of water had been transported by Monokuma. It was part of the rations that Futaba had asked for."_

_Faye scratched her cheek. "Well, I woke up a bit later than Abraham. By the time I was ready, he had already gone there and filled in his basket with half the given cans. Each of us was supposed to carry fifteen cans."_

_Masashi remembered that before the body discovery, Faye had complained about Abraham's behavior, so this must have been the occasion that she had been talking about._

_"Anyway, after I filled in my basket with the remaining cans, we came here to move the rations as we had the morning before," Faye continued. "After I unlocked the door to the first exhibit room, for about a minute, I was busy turning on the light orbs in that room, while Abraham had gone ahead and turned the lights on in this room. But once I was done and came here, he had already turned on all the orbs in his room and had unpacked his basket of cans."_

_"What can I say? I'm a quick worker, unlike my partner here," Abraham said snidely._

* * *

Faye gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. "Ah! I never bothered to check the contents of his basket! When I arrived at the dining room, Abraham had already arrived there. Half the cans were already gone, and I just assumed that he had simply put them in his basket!"

"But in truth, he had already put the orb inside," Masashi said, "and he knew that you had no reason to scrutinize his basket. And since the baskets have lids on them, he managed to hide the orb and fool you fully!"

"Ah… _Aaaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Faye exclaimed, shock rushing through her face.

"So Abraham was relying on Faye to act like that?" Tanjiro asked.

"Seems so. The two had transported the rations yesterday as well, so he'd already seen how Faye would act," Sorao said. "And even if he had failed in taking the orb back to the room because, say, Faye woke up earlier than he had expected… it wouldn't have been a problem, I imagine. He'd just put the light orb elsewhere on the ship, and the only drawback is that the light orb's involvement in the crime would be revealed."

"So that's why he risked taking the light orb back to the second exhibit room," Mari said, nodding along. "Ideally, all traces of the light orb's involvement would be erased. Kasumi's witness account wouldn't have been a problem, since the killer had wanted us to doubt her, anyway."

"Wow! That's a pretty sneaky way to smuggle something!" Kasumi said, looking impressed. "It's pretty situational, but hey, it worked, so I guess I can't really complain!"

"Since the size of the light orb was an important factor in his plan," Maiha added, "it's clear at last why he didn't go for the bat in the very beginning."

"Abraham couldn't have smuggled the bat back in if he had smuggled it out," Haruyuki said, nodding along. "The size would've made it impossible to hide during this morning's transporting of the rations. But the light orb was much smaller, which gave him the opportunity to hide it in his basket."

"_Grgh__!_" Abraham groaned as he flinched.

"Well, Abraham?" Masashi said. "If you have any arguments, please, tell us. But I think it's pretty clear how you pulled off your complicated scheme."

Masashi was somewhat relieved to see fear and dread on the waiter's face, thinking that he would give up and admit everything at long last. And for the next few seconds, Abraham stayed silent as he glowered, his eyes full of loathing and silent cursing. From what Masashi could tell, the others too thought that he had no counterargument left. It was over, or so it seemed.

But as Masashi was about to open his mouth, however, a quiet laugh came from the waiter, and the more time passed, the louder it grew. So haughty was the laugh that the confidence that the others had in their judgment changed into fearful confusion instead.

"You… You think you've had me?" Abraham said. "Well, sorry to fucking disappoint you, but I'll confess to nothing that came out of your goddamn mouth!"

_Wh-What?!_ Masashi thought. _He's still not given up yet!_

Abraham smirked an arrogant smirk. "You spew out all that bullshit about access, vents, and smuggling, but you've forgotten one very, very crucial detail! That is… the size of the baskets!"

"The… size?" Masashi raised his brow. "What do you mean?"

"You see, each basket can barely hold fifteen cans," Abraham answered. "In other words, putting anything else in a basket of fifteen cans is impossible, unless that object is incredibly small.

"But!" Abraham made a swift motion with his right hand. "There are two things to remember: one, the light orb is no small object. I'd say that it's the size of several cans. And two, when Faye went to the second exhibit room with her basket of rations, I had already unpacked the cans in my basket. And she saw that there were exactly fifteen cans in the pile that I had just unloaded!"

"And… so what?" Sayua said. "How does that show you couldn't have done it?"

"You idiotic maggot! Is it not clear enough for you?!" Abraham said. "If I had tried to smuggle the light orb in my basket, there must have been far fewer cans to allow for room for the orb! But I most certainly had fifteen cans in my basket! That none of you fucking maggots can deny! In short, _it is impossible for me to have smuggled the light orb by using the basket!_"

"Aah... _Aaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Masashi exclaimed, utterly surprised by the force in his argument. "That… That is…!"

"I don't really want to say it, but Abraham's right!" Arashi said. "However you look at it, it definitely was impossible!"

"Yeah, and I don't think Abraham changed the basket somehow to fit in the orb," Tanjiro said. "We can check out the baskets ourselves if we're still unsure about that."

"M-Maybe Sir Abraham used shrinking magic to make the orb fit, then!" Kumi suggested less meekly than before.

"I told you to shut your fucking mouth and spare us from your endless bullshit about fairies and whatever!" Abraham exclaimed. "Anyway, it's impossible that I did what the goddamn idiot over there has accused me of doing! And so I can't be the culprit!"

"I… I can't vote for him in good conscience unless this is resolved," Sister Hikari said. "He's certainly uncouth, to say the least, but that doesn't detract from his argument."

"Y-Yeah, the culprit's got to be someone else, th-then!" Hikari said.

To Masashi's horror, more and more of the class appeared in agreement that they should not vote for Abraham. Notwithstanding all the conclusions made up to this point, it took only one persuasive counterargument to destroy all that work.

"No… No, that can't be it at all!" Masashi said. He was certain that Abraham was the killer, but until he figured out Abraham's last trick, he would not convince his peers to think so. "There may still have been another way for you to pull it off. You must've used a certain trick."

_Let's see here… was there really a way for Abraham to smuggle in the light orb with his fifteen cans of food?_ Masashi thought. _Given the size of the basket..._

"I don't think Abraham could've put the fifteen cans and the light orb in his basket," Masashi continued. Abraham might be clever, but he most certainly could do nothing about the basket's capacity. "He must've put only five cans or so and the orb inside."

"So could he have hidden the other cans on his person, then?" Tanjiro asked.

"No… I don't think so," Faye said. "The cans aren't that small, and if he had managed to put ten of them on his person, he would've had to walk very carefully to avoid letting even one fall."

Abraham sneered as he crossed his arms. "You see? It was impossible to sneak the cans and the light orb at the same time!"

"That may be true… but that doesn't mean you couldn't have found another way to fool Faye," Masashi said.

_Let's see here… since Abraham couldn't have taken anything from outside to help him,_ Masashi thought, _he must have used something from the second exhibit room while Faye wasn't looking. Once I point out what it is, I'll have exposed his last trick!_

Abraham frowned as he glared at his accuser. "You won't give up? What will it take for you to drop your bullshit? Well, fine by me! I'll make you fucking give up! You'll see how stupid, stupid, _stupid_ you were for accusing me!"

* * *

**Argument Armament: Abraham Zargari**

"Shut the fuck up!"

_No, you shut up!_

"What you say is nothing but bullshit!"

_No, it's not! You're the only one that could've done it!_

"You've got the wrong man, bastard!"

_No, I'm certain it's you!_

"Honestly, someone should drill this right into your fucking skull!"

_Oh, that's not happening any time soon!_

"Don't you fuck with me with your bluffing!"

_I won't give up! It's not an option here!_

"You and your goddamn accusations can go to hell!"

_You're not making this easier for either of us, you know!_

"You fucking piss me off with your attitude!"

_Ugh… Listening to you is really starting to get annoying._

"Fuck off with your bluffs!"

_No… Sorry, Abraham, but that's not true at all._

"I couldn't have smuggled the orb!"

_No, I'm pretty certain you could have!_

"Impossible… Impossible!"

_It is possible!_

"**What is the so-called trick that I used to fool Faye?**"

Masashi readied himself and gave the waiter the answer that he had desperately hoped that he could not figure out:

**You used yesterday's cans of rations! **

"Wh… _What?_" Abraham said much more quietly, as if his answer had bereft him of his boldness. "What on earth... are you talking about?"

"Remember that yesterday morning, you and Faye transported rations as well? You put in the second exhibit room a total of thirty cans," Masashi said. "And this morning, you guys found that ten cans from that pile were missing."

"O-Oh, yeah, that's right!" Faye said. "I completely forgot about that!"

"A-And?" Abraham said nervously. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Here's the thing… you hid the light orb in the basket, that's for sure," Masashi continued. "But to do that, you needed to make room in the basket, so you needed to take a certain number of cans out of the basket. That, however, led to a new problem: how would you explain the smaller number of cans in your basket when you had to unload them?"

"Ah!" Faye said. "Don't tell me that he… used the cans from yesterday's pile!"

Masashi nodded. "When you went into the second exhibit room, Abraham had already unloaded his pile of cans, or so he wanted you to think. But the truth is, to make up for the missing cans, he simply substituted them with cans from yesterday's pile of cans. He had time to do so, since he also needed to put the light orb in its original place."

"Oh, so _that's _how he fooled Faye," Sorao remarked. "He made it look as if he had unloaded fifteen cans from his basket, when in truth, he had unloaded far fewer and had taken the rest from another pile."

"A-_Argh!_" Abraham groaned, his confidence dwindling.

"But wait… Where are the ten cans that Abraham never took with him to the exhibit room?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Yeah, we've looked through the ships and haven't found them!" Faye said.

"Well… if you wanted to hide something from the rest of us, where would you put it?" Haruyuki asked.

Arashi gasped. "His room! He must've taken the ten cans to his room before Miss Nirigiri woke up and met with him!"

"_Grrk!_ You... goddamn... _maggot!_" Abraham uttered but with much less boldness and energy.

"W-Wait, why didn't Abraham g-get rid of the cans wh-when he c-could?" Hikari asked. "I-I mean... those cans are p-pretty incriminating..."

"I imagine that it was impossible to get rid of them," Sorao answered. "After all, he couldn't have very well thrown them out into the sea. That would've been against the rules."

"Indeed. It was rather easy to dispose of the silver thread that he had used to smuggle out the light orb, I imagine," Haruyuki said, "but metallic containers were another story. So he simply thought it safest to hide them in his room, which no one but him could access."

"So, Abraham, it appears that your last trick's been exposed at last," Masashi said, unwilling to stop now until he heard a confession from the man. "I'm sure that if Captain Monokuma lets us search your room, we'll find exactly ten cans of food there."

"N-No! You can't...!" Abraham protested, his voice still showing some strength.

_"_Puhuhuhuhuhuhu!" Monokuma said. "I generally don't hold recesses, but you've certainly given me more than enough reason that I'm willing to approve a search!"

"_Wh-WHAT?!_" Abraham exclaimed, his voice filled with fear. "N-No... Th-This can't be happening...! No, no, _no, no, no!_"

"Well, Abraham?" Haruyuki said. "Do you wish to have us search your room, or will you admit to your misdeed here and now?"

"Either way," Maiha said, "you are done for."

"And _t__hat_," Masashi finished, "should be good enough evidence to show that you killed Futaba Inoshishi!"

"Aah…. Aah… I… I… _I...!_"

Abraham said no more and hung down his head.

A few seconds passed, and it was clear that he had lost all willingness to resist anymore. Though glad that things would soon be over at last, Masashi was far sadder that things had to end up like this. Like last time, he would have to say another of his peers leave, and however irksome and unlikeable Abraham might be, he was still his fellow man, and he did not deserve to die. Nonetheless, it was too late to have things go differently. He had to make everything clear for the others, and afterwards, he could go back to the peace that he had thought that they all had managed to achieve.

"It's time to show the truth of your scheme," Masashi said. "After I'm done, I expect to hear a confession from you. Do you understand?"

Abraham said nothing, which Masashi took as a sign that he understood full well what was going on.

* * *

**Closing Argument**

"First of all, the killer wrote two notes," Masashi began. "One was to Futaba, and hers told her to go to the Memory Bank that night, with a seeming reassurance that it was safe to do so. The other was to Kasumi, and it told her to go to the Memory Bank at 1:00 AM. The note also told Kasumi to destroy it.

"The killer now needed to get the murder weapon, which was behind locked doors. Around 7 PM, the killer and Faye did their nightly inspection of the exhibit rooms. But after the two left the rooms, the killer asked Faye to unlock the door, claiming that they had dropped a pen inside. In truth, however, the killer used that time by themselves in the rooms for two things. One was to make it look as if a metal bat in the second exhibit room were the murder weapon. The killer did so by using one of the knives stowed in that room to make a small wound on their body. The blood was then planted on the bat, and the killer used the bandages that they had secretly brought to cover the wound.

"The other task was to smuggle one of the second exhibit room's light orbs out. The killer used the white thread, which they had also hidden on their person. They tied the thread to the light orb and then rolled the orb through the vent in the first exhibit room. They then grabbed the thread and used it to safely lower the orb, since it would break if simply left to drop from a great height. Once the killer determined that the orb had touched the bottom of the vent, they then left the exhibit rooms. Of course, Faye inspected the killer with her metal detector, and from the findings, she thought that the killer had not tried to smuggle anything out, which was exactly what the killer wanted her to think.

"Now the killer needed to get the orb. They took the was-scepter from the living room and went to the Memory Bank with it sometime before 9:00 PM, since that was when Murphy would arrive at the fourth deck to do his painting. Because of the scepter's hook-like end, they could use it to get the orb from the vent. The whole complicated scheme with the vent was due to the fact that it was against the rules to crawl in the vents.

"With the murder weapon, the killer was ready at last. To trick Futaba into thinking that it was safe to go to the Memory Bank, they pressed the power button on their boat, as the boats' movements are all automatic. Of course, that meant that the killer was stranded on that side, but that was a risk that they were willing to take. The killer then waited in the Memory Bank for a long while.

"Their waiting, sadly enough, paid off, as Futaba made her way to the Memory Bank. She saw no boats on the Memory Bank side of the river, so she assumed that no one was there. But when she went there, the killer then ambushed her and struck her with the light orb, which killed her.

"Now the killer planned to pose as Futaba to make it look as if Kasumi had killed her later. The killer turned on the music function of the light orb, wrote Kasumi's name with blood on the back of Futaba's note, and went into Futaba's pod. For the next few hours, they watched her memories, making the History log function of her pod record these actions.

"When Kasumi arrived at the Memory Bank at 12:59 AM, the music suddenly changed. After all, a special feature of the music function was that it would change if the number of people in the room changed. The killer then abruptly stopped their current memory, knowing that Kasumi had arrived. Frightened by the body discovery and her name written on the note, Kasumi then fled the scene at once, which caused the music to change again.

"The killer then got out of the pod at 1:00 AM exactly and checked the scene to make sure that everything should be as they wanted. Afterwards, they picked up the scepter and the orb, turned off the music, and left the Memory Bank. To get back to the other side of the river, they simply used the boat that Futaba had ridden on, and they used the same trick as before to send it back to the Memory Bank side. The killer had no problem with putting the scepter back in the living room and getting rid of the silver thread from earlier.

"There was one last part to their scheme: smuggling the orb back into the second exhibit room. The killer woke up early and found in the dining room the supply of rations given by Monokuma. They then filled the basket with only five of the cans and the light orb, the remaining ten cans hidden in their room. They needed five exactly, because there were thirty cans in total, and the killer and Faye were each to move fifteen cans.

"Once Faye woke up and finished her preparations, she and the killer went to the exhibit rooms. At that point, the killer had to move quickly. Faye was busy turning on the light orbs in the first exhibit room, so during that time, inside the second exhibit room, the killer not only put the orb back to its original spot but also took ten cans from yesterday's pile of rations. They then combined those cans with the five cans from this morning's provisions, and thus, they completed the illusion that fifteen cans had been in their basket all along. Faye was completely taken in when she went there and unloaded her basket.

"And so, the trick was complete! The many complicated parts of this scheme made it look as if the killer had needed permanent access to the second exhibit room, which the killer definitely lacked!"

Masashi then pointed at the culprit, who could only show a weak scowl. "Now that your scheme has been shown in full detail, will you confess at last, **Abraham Zargari, the Ultimate Waiter?!**"

Once Masashi was done, all the innocents looked at the waiter, amazed that he had managed to pull off a rather complicated scheme and had almost gotten away with it. The doubts and uncertainties that he had effected in them had undoubtedly been many, but in the end, all his work had been made utterly meaningless.

"Abraham?" Faye asked, looking somewhat worried. "Are… Are you all right?"

For the next few seconds, he said nothing, but as Masashi thought that he planned to accept the result in silence, the waiter opened his mouth.

"I… I can't believe it…" he uttered. "To be beaten… by cans of food of all things… This… has to be a fucking bad joke..."

"So… you admit it?" Sorao said, staring at him with a hint of seriousness. "You're the one that killed Lady Inoshishi?"

"And you're the one that framed me for the crime?" Kasumi said.

Abraham, however, turned away not only from him but also from all the others.

"Just get on with the vote already," Abraham said. "I have nothing else to say."

Though it had been fully clear that he was the killer, to hear his words of resignation shocked many of the others for a few seconds. To hear a fellow human give up on his life like that was very hard to handle, to say the least.

A few seconds later, however, the silence was broken by a certain bear's laughter.

"All right, now, I'm sure you're all tired and hungry, so let's get to the voting!" Monokuma said. "You can sate your appetite for information afterwards! Now, then, it's… _Voting Time!_"

Like last time, the podiums' panels turned on, showing the square with the students' faces on it. Without further ado, Masashi voted for Abraham.

"The voting has finished!" Monokuma said. "Let's go ahead and see the results!"

The courtroom's monitors turned on, all showing a unanimous result for Abraham.

Monokuma chortled as he set his paws over his mouth. "Who will be chosen as the blackened?! Will you make the right choice or the dreadfully wrong one?!"

Then the roulette wheel with the participants' pixelated faces showed up, and the spinning wheel stopped at Abraham's pocket. The usual signs of celebration showed up, signaling the class trial's end.

* * *

**Surprise! The killer was Asshole Waiter all along. How many of you guys thought that he was suspicious?**

**What was a clue that Abraham had done it? After the previous chapter, it was possible to figure out that it was Abraham. The killing was obviously not a suicide, so Futaba is out. Kasumi couldn't have done it (and I think it was possible to figure that out after the investigation chapter), and because of the timing, neither Maiha nor Haruyuki could've done it. That means that all three people with lockpicks and thus full access to the exhibit rooms are out. And since the killer had to have some level of access, all characters with no access are out as well. That leaves Abraham and Faye, each of whom had half-access, but Faye never had an opportunity to go to the second exhibit room by herself and do anything with the bat, which leaves Abraham by process of elimination.**

**Anyway, like last time, the trial's aftermath and the execution will be shown in the next chapter, and I'll give my thoughts on Abraham then.**


	24. The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands (10)

"Puhuhuhuhu!" Monokuma said as the students spread out throughout the courtroom like last time. "Wow! I can't believe you've voted correctly! I certainly couldn't have seen this coming in a million years! Indeed, the blackened who killed Futaba Inoshishi was none other than Abraham Zargari!"

The blackened sighed as the others directed their weary and inquisitive gazes at him. "What a fucking mess this is… All this work done for nothing."

"I-I still can't believe it…" Sister Hikari mumbled. "Why… Why did this have to happen again?"

Kumi nodded slightly as he wiped his eyes. "Y-Yeah… Why? I-I thought we were all friends! Sure, you're mean and like to say a lot of bad words, but deep down, I thought you were on the side of good!"

"I agree… Even if there's the problem of your temperament," Tanjiro said, "I'd think that even you could see how evil it is to resort to murder, especially after what had happened to Atsushi and Haruka..."

Abraham said nothing as he glanced elsewhere, however.

"Why, Abraham…? Why?" Faye asked, eyes already watering.

"Hey, spill the beans already!" Sayua bade. "What made you snap and decide to off that rich chick?"

"Yeah… Please, answer us, man," Sorao said, a glint of sadness in his eyes. "Why… Why did you kill Lady Inoshishi?"

"I'd like to know as well!" Kasumi said. "There's got to be a reason why you went through all that work to frame me!"

"Well, if he will not answer us," Haruyuki said, "I believe that we can ask our captain for our desired information—"

"Hmph. No need to do so. I was simply preparing myself."

Abraham glanced back at the rest of them at last, and though his expression was plain, Masashi could sense a great deal of tiredness coming therefrom.

"You want answers that badly?" Abraham said, not a hint of anger in his voice. "Well, all right. I'll tell you everything. I'm not so stubborn as to think that I still have anything to lose at this point."

"Well, then, to begin with," Mari said calmly, "did your reason have something to do with the motive?"

Abraham nodded. "It was the one thing that pushed me into killing."

Once again, the others gasped, their expressions growing drearier and drearier as they accepted the fact that Monokuma's temptations had worked again.

"Oh… So you wanted to get back your stolen memories of your darling," Murphy said, lowering the rim of his straw hat. "That's… pretty understandable. It's pretty frightening to have no memories of someone important to you."

"Then who was it?!" Arashi asked. "W-Was it your mother?! Your father?!"

"Or perhaps he does not remember, because it was someone whose being he could not naturally deduce, like a sibling or a friend," Haruyuki said. "Perhaps he murdered Futaba because he sought his darling's identity. Only after getting away with the crime would he have gotten back his memories."

Abraham snorted. "Sorry, but that's not it. It's true that I thought it'd be swell to have my stolen memories back, and I still remembered my mother and my father, so I didn't know who my darling was. Say, Captain Monokuma, who is it, anyway?"

Monokuma chortled. "I don't see any harm in telling you now, so I'll say it: it's your younger brother! Among the four siblings you have, he was by far your favorite!"

"Ah, a younger brother… That makes sense," Abraham said, looking none the happier, however. "Anyway… Getting back to the point… My memories were important, but getting them back wasn't what I mainly had in mind."

"Huh?" Masashi raised his eyes. He had guessed that Abraham had simply wanted to be given back his memories, just as Haruka had wanted to gain knowledge of what had happened to her mother. But something about Abraham's response and overall behavior betokened that the problem had come from elsewhere.

"I-I don't get it, Abraham," Faye said, she and most of the others looking utterly befuddled by his answer. "If you didn't do it with the main intention of getting back your memories... then why?"

The waiter lowered his shoulders a bit as he heaved a great sigh. "It was the motive that caused me to begin to lose control."

_Lose… control?_ Masashi could not fathom what Abraham was talking about. _Lose control of what?_

The group waited for Abraham's explanation with bated breath, but once again, the man said nothing. Unlike his earlier silence, however, it appeared that he was struggling to get the words out of his mouth.

Just then, Monokuma let out a short cry that drew all the group's attention. "Well, now, I don't think our waiter's fully talkative about this! That's pretty weird if you ask me, since I'm pretty sure waiters are supposed to be able to make conversation. Well, if that's the case, I'll explain in his stead."

Abraham's face tensed up a little once Monokuma decided to tell the group in his stead. Whatever it might be, Masashi had a feeling that what he would hear was not pleasant at all.

"You see, everyone… Abraham here actually has a connection to a certain condition!" Monokuma began.

"Wh-What?!" Masashi exclaimed as he and the others looked at the man, who seemed to look well enough, albeit a little tired and gaunt. "Wh-What is this condition?"

"Well… It's pretty interesting if you ask me!" Monokuma replied as he covered his mouth with his paws. "I mean, it's not every day that we get to see the combination of a waiter and _anorexia nervosa_."

"Wh-What…?" Masashi muttered out of sheer astonishment. "Anorexia… nervosa?"

"Huh? What's that?" Kumi asked, tilting his head slightly.

Tanjiro sighed, his expression drearier than usual. "It's… a very serious disorder, to put it lightly. If I understand it right, those who suffer from it have an unwarranted fear of being overweight or becoming so. Hence, they begin to… cut back on their eating…"

"B-But Sir Abraham doesn't look overweight at all," Kumi said. "Why can't he see that?"

"Oh, if only it were that simple," Haruyuki added. "Alas, it is a problem with the mind. Those who suffer from the disorder, I hear, lose weight at an unhealthy level, but they still see themselves differently and so continue their dangerous habit, which leads to a vicious cycle."

Abraham ground his teeth, sweat dripping down his brow, his eyes slightly filled with fear and dread. Eventually, however, he calmed down a bit. "Yeah... That's right. I hate to admit it, but that's the gist of my… problem."

"To say that it is a problem is certainly understating it," Maiha replied. "How did you come to have such a condition?"

Abraham set his right hand on his forehead. "Well… I'll keep it short and simple. A few years ago, I worked as a waiter at my family's restaurant. But my parents soon got a divorce, and so business took a great hit. Before long, we found ourselves in hot water with near bankruptcy. At that point, everything in my life seemed to be going out of control… and I felt so helpless and confused that I… saw my eating to be the only thing I had control over."

_Control…_ Masashi began to see what Abraham had referred to with that word.

"S-So you… r-restricted what you ate?" Hikari asked.

"Yes. It started off small, but gradually, what I cut out grew greater and greater," Abraham said, gripping his black tie. "I didn't see it as a problem at the time, and admittedly, it would've gotten far worse if it hadn't been for a change in our fortunes. Many people got word of what was happening to our restaurant and so donated enough money to help us pay off all our debts."

"Oh, well, that's good!" Arashi said. "So your problems ended there, right?"

_Uh, no, I don't think so…_ Masashi thought, seeing that Abraham had not actually explained how he had become diagnosed with the disorder.

Abraham shook his head. "Because of all the attention, I managed to find a job in a top-class restaurant, and after a long while, I was given the title of Ultimate Waiter. It was _fucking_ fantastic to get some publicity for it, but…" He shook his head. "It came along with a lot of stress. I was falling back to my old habit of eating less, which I was desperately trying to avoid."

"And in the end, you fell victim to it," Haruyuki finished.

"Exactly. I passed out from malnutrition during one of my shifts," Abraham said, his voice dismal. "I was sent to a clinic right away and learned to manage my eating habits, so I was put on the road to recovery. Still, I haven't gotten back to a healthy level of weight."

"Hey, wait a minute… Is that why you haven't been eating with us at all?" Tanjiro asked. "Every time we start a meal, you always insist that we eat without you, since you say you plan to eat later."

"Ah, that's right!" Faye said. "Don't tell me that…"

Abraham snorted. "I can't stand eating before you guys… It's challenging enough to go through with it to stave off my eating disorder. That's why I always do it alone."

"W-We all get your problem now," Hikari said, "b-but how is it related to the m-motive?"

The waiter grimaced as he calmed himself, even though there was still a noticeably great amount of tension coming from him. "I… I couldn't believe what I had heard when the bear said my memories had been taken away. It was all so strange and ludicrous! At least with the hostage situation, it was realistic enough to accept. I could see how with enough manpower, Monokuma could have kidnapped our loved ones.

"But the whole memory theft… it was nothing like anything that I'd ever fathomed!" Abraham continued. "It was bad enough that I'd been kidnapped and put on this hellhole, but I at least thought that what was in my mind was safe and could never be taken from me!

"But seeing that not even my memories were safe from Monokuma… I saw my situation in a different light. I had felt that I had some control, but when that was shown to be wrong… I started thinking: if Monokuma could take away my memories… what else could he do to me? I started to feel my control over the situation slipping from my hands, and it influenced my willingness to keep up my eating habits. In other words, I found myself step by step undoing the progress I had made."

"Oh, I think I get it now…" Mari said, as calm as ever. "The reason that the motive pushed you into killing seems clear. The contents of the memories were valuable, of course, but that wasn't the main reason. No, it was the fact that your memories were stolen from you in the first place that made you lose control of your condition and thus pressured you to escape."

The others worsened in their expressions as they saw what Mari had said. Yes, that the memory theft had even been possible must have made Abraham think that he had essentially no control over himself, and so his mental state had worsened to the point that he would have fully succumbed to his disorder sooner or later.

_Come to think of it… two nights ago, Abraham fell and broke some dishes,_ Masashi thought. _That must have been due to the growing tiredness that he had felt as a result of his worsening mental state..._

Masashi stared at the waiter in astonishment as the realization set in: Abraham had to avoid letting them know that he was in truth a weakling both physically and mentally. It made sense; in a killing game, potential killers would go after the weak and naive ones, and Abraham could have hardly fought back if someone had thought to target him. And from the others' faces, it seemed that most of them had realized it as well.

"H-Hey… You still haven't answered my question, man." It was Sorao, who looked a bit upset as he glared at the guilty man. "Why… Why did you choose Lady Inoshishi as your target?"

"Oh, right, that…" Abraham yawned, covering his mouth. "It's funny how things should work out, actually… Sometime after our memories were taken away, one day, Futaba and I had a little conversation in the dining room..."

* * *

"_Ah, Abraham!" Futaba called out to him, having sat herself down at the table. "Could you please make me some cocoa? It's been awfully cold these last few days."_

_Abraham looked at her with weary eyes, though she seemed unwitting of his condition. It was ever so tiring to have to follow the lady's bidding, but as the Ultimate Waiter, he was supposed to find this work easy. It had only been a day since they all had been bereft of their memories of their darlings, and yet Abraham found it rather difficult to keep up this facade of being unaffected._

_Once he began the making of the cocoa, Abraham headed back out from the kitchen, and he began to make some friendly chatter with her. She seemed to have nothing better to do, and she appeared to be one of those customers that would like the waiter to amuse them a bit._

"_Now that I think about it, I would love to visit Egypt one day," Futaba said, as the conversation had been about what she thought about the Egyptian ship. "I have hardly ever traveled the world, but I think it would be a great shame if I could not see even a sight outside Japan."_

"_Is that so?" Abraham said, keeping up his smile. "Well, perhaps your dancer friend knows more about the world. That's the worth of having friends outside one's land, I suppose."_

_It was then, however, that Futaba looked askance at him, as if he had said something uncouth._

"_Dancer friend…? Whom are you talking about?" Futaba asked with a puzzled tone._

_Now Abraham looked weirdly at her. "Your friend that you mentioned a while ago… Magdalena Engracia Pinto was her name."_

_Recalling her name was a trivial effort for him. After all, he would not have become the Ultimate Waiter if he had not had such an excellent memory. It was how he could remember details of a few regulars, and he would always delight them whenever he recalled to them what they had said the last time they had dined at the restaurant._

_Futaba set a finger on her chin and thought for a few seconds. "No… I'm sorry, but I'm afraid you may be mistaken. I know of no such dancer."_

_Ah, so that was it. The dancer was Futaba Inoshishi's forgotten darling. It all made sense now. And it appeared that no one had ever reminded her of the dancer, which meant that he was the only one who knew her darling's name..._

"_Why are you looking at me like that?" Futaba asked._

_It took a second for Abraham to see that the revelation had delighted him enough to make him show a little glee._

"_Ah, nothing. I was just thinking about how you were so lucky to meet the dancer," Abraham said, having quickly come up with a lie. "You told me a while ago that you and your family once watched a performance of hers years ago. She was apparently a very skilled and lithe dancer. You befriended the dancer before she headed back to her homeland."_

"_I did?" Futaba said, still keeping her puzzled expression._

"_Yes, but it appears that the stress from this situation has made you forget a bit." Abraham chuckled. "Perhaps the cocoa will help jog your memory. A hot drink brings up warm memories, they say."_

_Futaba scratched her chin a little. "Is that so? I can't say I've ever heard that expression… is that a piece of folk wisdom?"_

* * *

Abraham cracked a small smile, the first that he had shown since the vote. "Oh, yes, the realization that I knew something very important about her delighted me. For me, any information can be used as a weapon, and so since it was her dancer friend that she had forgotten, it meant that I could entice her with information about her darling. And if need were, I could always access her pod."

"Was that... the only reason?" Sorao asked, staring at him with confounded eyes.

"Oh, it was the main reason, but it helped that Futaba herself was not physically strong at all," Abraham said. "Even with a weapon, I'm not particularly strong, so I needed someone weaker to kill off. Futaba qualified, and as I've already explained, she happened to be more… suitable than the other weaklings."

"I… see…" Masashi said, still amazed at the lengths that Abraham had gone.

"My turn now!" Kasumi said. "So what was the deal with framing me? I mean, I understand the whole part about smuggling the weapon out, but you didn't need to frame me!"

"Hah! Unlike the clown, I actually _needed_ to frame you," Abraham answered, frowning.

"What? _Needed?_" Faye said.

"Think about it. You guys would've figured out one way or another that the weapon must have come from the second exhibit room," Abraham answered. "Then with Faye's testimony, I would've been seen as the most suspicious suspect, and you would've most likely figured out my smuggling scheme. It was a problem that I stumbled upon when I devised my scheme."

"So when did you light on the solution?" Tanjiro asked.

Abraham clicked his tongue. "Sometime after I realized who Futaba's forgotten darling was, I happened to see the idiotic thief girl crawling around the merry-go-round looking for something. Even though she quickly snatched it, I had already seen that it was a lockpick, and so it occurred to me… she could access both exhibit rooms with that lockpick. Then by framing her, I would have no longer been the most suspicious suspect. So I expanded my scheme to frame her."

"Of course, Haruyuki and Maiha also had lockpicks on them because of Kasumi's carelessness," Mari said, "but you couldn't have known that, could you?"

"No. That's why I focused on framing Kasumi only," Abraham answered.

Masashi gaped at Abraham's explanation for the choices in his scheme. It was admittedly incredibly complex and had many chances for him to make a great mistake somewhere, and yet he could see why Abraham had chosen to risk pulling it off. Because of his role as the keeper of the key to the second exhibit room, he needed to ward off as much suspicion as he could by making it look as if it were impossible for him to access the weapon.

"It's rather ironic, is it not?" Haruyuki said. "You spent all that effort on framing Kasumi, and you convincingly made her look like the culprit. But the one thing that led to your undoing was something you could've _never_ foreseen."

"You mean… the fact that Sayua and Tanjiro saw me last night?" Kasumi said.

Haruyuki nodded. "Exactly. Thanks to their witness account, you were proven to be innocent."

"And Sayua and I were there only because she took Kumi's teddy bear last night and wanted to hide it somewhere late at night," Tanjiro said.

"And that only happened because Kumi suddenly collapsed from lack of adequate sleep, and she had the opportunity to steal it…" Sister Hikari said.

"Now that I think about it... the circumstances behind Sayua's and Tanjiro's witness account were _extremely_ fortunate for us," Murphy said. "There was definitely no way you could've seen that coming."

"That's right…" Mari said, her gaze turning more serious, oddly enough. "Your plan was always meant to fail."

_Wait… "meant to fail"?_ Masashi thought, puzzled by her wording. _That's... a rather odd remark._

"Anything else you want to say?" Murphy asked.

"Oh, yes, there _is _one more thing," Abraham answered. "You mentioned a while ago that the killer could've learned Kasumi's name from her Monopad. After all, she carelessly dropped it somewhere, so I definitely had the opportunity to do so."

"Wait… are you saying that I was wrong?" Masashi asked, realizing that Abraham would not be saying this if he were right about this.

"Of course I am. I knew that Futaba had found her Monopad and had discovered what her name was, but it was not from the Monopad or Futaba that I got the name."

Abraham then took something out of his pocket, and it was a piece of paper that had been neatly folded. "Do you remember what Monokuma said after he had stolen our memories?"

* * *

_Monokuma let out a hearty but irksome laugh. "This one's nothing bad. In fact, think of it as a gift! Somewhere on this ship, I've left behind a certain… thing."_

_"A… thing?" Sister Hikari asked as she and the others looked at him bemusedly._

_"Yes, you may find it to be of great interest if you happen to find it," Monokuma answered. "And don't worry, you'll tell that it's from me if you see it."_

* * *

"Oh, yeah, that's right!" Faye said, eyes widened. "We never found out what it was all along!"

"A few of us went around looking for it, but to no avail, or so you thought," Abraham replied. "Of course, while looking around with Futaba, I actually found this list behind one of the hung drawings in the arts and crafts room. Since the contents are typed, it would've been impossible for any of us to fake it, so I knew for sure that it was from Monokuma. I took the list without letting Futaba notice."

"So the list had my name on it?" Kasumi asked, noticeably trying to suppress a grimace.

"Yep, that's right! It's a list of names of this killing game's participants, so naturally, I used your true name!" Monokuma said. "Like all the other things that come out of my gut, it proved to be rather helpful, didn't it?"

"Wait, that's it?!" Sayua said. "All that build-up and suspense about that unknown thing ended up being wasted on a list of our names?! I'd figured that it would be something more valuable! You know, like a gem or a phone or a car!"

"I think a car would've been out of the question, in any case..." Tanjiro replied.

Abraham snorted. "The idiotic thief girl's name was far more valuable to me than the _other_ piece of information on the list, anyway."

"What…? 'Other'?" Masashi said. "What are you talking about?"

"It's something that'll interest you guys, I bet," Abraham answered. "But for the record, it didn't change my goddamn mind about escaping at all. You'd better read the list after the trial."

That said, Abraham handed Masashi the list, after which he pocketed it. Curious as he was to see what this other piece of information was, he decided to respect Abraham's wishes and read it later.

"I think it's about time that we got started with what we've all been waiting for: the execution! Our murderer's just deserts!" Monokuma said, stifling his giggle. "I'll give you only a minute or so for your last words, so make it quick!"

Abraham let out a scoff as he eyed the bear nonchalantly. "Seems like my time's nearly up. Anything to say before I go?"

"I… I can't believe I'm saying this, but…" Faye sighed as she looked at him sheepishly. "I think I'll miss you…"

"Really?" Abraham frowned. "I'm pretty sure you're well aware of how loathsome I am."

"Still… even with your negative qualities," the patissier replied, "I think there's some good in you. If only you had told us your problems… we might have worked it all out."

Abraham looked her in the eye for a few seconds before glancing away. "It's a waste of time to think about what might have been. All that matters is how things are now. In the end, I'm to be executed, and there's not a goddamn thing you can do about that."

"Abraham… Why aren't you scared?" Masashi asked, having noticed how calm he had been since the vote. "Aren't you afraid of what's coming up?"

"Yeah, now that I think about it… you're not swearing so much as you usually do!" Arashi said. "What's up with that?! How can you be like that at a time like this?!"

At all these questions, Abraham scoffed. "Knowing the consequences of being caught, I tried to win the killing game, but I lost. Now that it's clear what'll happen to me, I see no reason to make a great fuss over this."

_Ah… I see…_

Abraham was no fool. He had known full well the reality of his situation; indeed, if he had been in denial about the risk of relapsing into his eating disorder, then Futaba's murder would have never happened. Moreover, Abraham might appear to be prideful, but deep down, he knew full well that he was weak both physically and mentally. Because of that, he had not the will to keep fighting on when it was beyond clear that victory was no longer possible, whence he had taken his loss rather well.

"S-Sir Abraham…" Kumi slowly approached him, his eyes filled with tears and sorrow. "D-Do you regret killing Lady Futaba?"

"No, not at all," Abraham answered bluntly. "What would have otherwise happened would have resulted in my death. Of that I am sure."

The man's answer seemed to have shocked Kumi a bit, as the storyteller said nothing for the next few seconds.

"Aw, disappointed?" Abraham said, his tone showing some condescension. "Disappointed that one of your so-called friends ended up being a monster?"

"N-No… You're not a monster, Sir Abraham…" Kumi whimpered. "I… I think I understand why you did what you did… I wish you hadn't killed Lady Futaba, but I know it was the killing game that made you do it! It wasn't truly your fault!"

Abraham looked away with a scowl. "Are you done already?"

"Th-There's one more thing…" Kumi said. "Wh-What kind of character would you like to be in my tales? I-It can be anything that you want, I promise!"

"Anything, you say?"

"Y-Yes… Anything."

For a short while, Abraham said nothing while keeping his gaze away from the small storyteller. Eventually, he gave his answer.

"I wish to become a king so great and mighty that all men fear him."

"'Fear'? Don't you mean 'love'?"

"That wouldn't fit me at all, would it?"

Kumi stared at the man in wonder as he took in the answer, and he opened his mouth as if to gainsay him. But nothing ever came out, and instead, the storyteller meekly nodded.

"Good. And now that that's done, let's not delay the inevitable anymore," Abraham said as he faced the one to deliver his doom. "Captain Monokuma… do what you will."

Monokuma laughed as he slapped his right paw on the arms of his throne. "Why, it pleases me to see such good service! I was afraid that a guy like you might try to run away from his duty.

"Now then, I've prepared a special punishment for Abraham Zargari, the Ultimate Waiter!" Monokuma continued. "Let's give it everything we've got! It's… PUNISHMENT TIME!"

Abraham let out one last chuckle, though it sounded rather hollow and lifeless. "This wasn't how I expected to be rid of my condition… but beggars can't be choosers."

Before anyone else should say anything, however, Monokuma took out his red button and slammed his yellow mallet on it. The monitors lit up, and Monokuma's sprite appeared and dragged Abraham's to the right.

"GAME OVER," the screen showed. "ABRAHAM HAS BEEN FOUND GUILTY. TIME FOR THE PUNISHMENT!"

* * *

Having been dragged off to his execution site, Abraham now stood in a restaurant that was filled with Monokumas dressed in sundry outfits, and they all sat at tables adorned with clean red tablecloth and pristine silverware, chatting quietly with one another. The walls and the floor were all of a light brown color, and in the background were arched windows that showed buildings with even more arches outside. On the walls were lanterns, a jackal's head, and weapons like a sword and an ax.

The title card then showed up on the monitors, and showed on a dull brown background that looked slightly tattered:

**One Dead Man, Coming Right Up!**

**Ultimate Waiter Abraham Zargari's Execution: Executed**

At once, all the Monokumas then raised an uproar, bidding the waiter serve them their meals already. Astounded and frozen at first, Abraham then gasped in pain as one of the Monokumas wrathfully threw him a knife. Though he nearly avoided the attack, the message was clear: he must serve his customers, or else the whole establishment should fall apart.

Abraham rushed into the nearby kitchen and a few seconds later, he came out holding two plates of smoked salmon and sliced beef. He made his way to the table of Monokumas that raised a sign, which signaled that he was to serve them. The Monokuma whom he had given the meal cheered, but the waiter was hit with such objects as plates and cups from the remaining customers. Wishing to escape the pelting, the waiter then speedily headed back to the kitchen once more. The more customers he served, the fewer the attacks became, and yet by the time he had served about ten customers, the waiter had grown extremely tired, having had to run back and forth.

There was only one customer left who had not been served. Abraham headed into the kitchen and came back out with a rather great plate of beef along with a few glasses of wine. But just as he was about to serve a Monokuma dressed like a businessman, a nearby customer suddenly extended his foot outwards. Abraham tried his best to avoid falling, but alas, his tiredness hindered him, and so he tripped. The tray flew into the air, the contents spilling onto the Monokuma businessman. The fleeting expression of joy on his face turned into great anger.

At once, Abraham got up and began to apologize, shock spread throughout his face, but it was too late: the businessman, in retaliation, took the jackal's head mounted on the wall and slammed it right onto his head, which made the waiter fall. But the attack had not killed him. No, the waiter was still alive, albeit barely. Was there still hope that he could somehow make up for this blunder?

Abraham weakly looked upwards, only to see two Monokumas dressed like chefs come out of the kitchen. After a few seconds of chatter between the chefs and the angry businessman, they came to an understanding as to how the latter ought to be compensated for the poor service.

Once the talk was done, one of the chefs then grabbed Abraham by the collar and pinned him down on a nearby table. The lights dimmed, and a spotlight was then shone on Abraham and the chef. The other chef reappeared, now wielding a great ax that had been hung on the wall, and by that point, all who beheld the scene saw what would soon happen. In his last moments, Abraham, sweating and looking utterly tired, shut his eyes.

All the preparations done, the ax went right below where his tie was worn on the neck, and the head was cut off in one fell swoop. Blood spewed out of the open wound, staining the nearby customers, none of whom, however, looked fazed. As the lighting turned back on, the other chef set the headless body upright and plugged the hole with the nearby jackal's head. Meanwhile, the chef that had beheaded the waiter picked his head up and scurried off to the kitchen.

A few seconds later, the chef returned with a platter and set it on the hungry businessman's table. Upon lifting the cover, the businessman clapped at the sight. The dish, after all, was none other than Abraham's head, besprinkled with spices, blood having spilled onto the plate as if it were the juice that oozed out of a steak.

The last customer's dish served, all the Monokumas in the restaurant cheered. The waiter had fulfilled his last customer's order, and so he had gotten his rest, never to wake up again.

* * *

Once again, the group was stunned by the horrific killing of one of its former members. To see such evil had been beyond terrifying the first time, but to see it again did not fail to inspire fear and dread in the survivors' hearts.

"Aah… _Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!_" Masashi screamed once he had fully taken in what he had seen.

"N-No... Abraham...!" Faye said, utterly pale as she covered most of her face with her hands.

"H-Holy shit…" Sayua muttered as she touched her forehead. "He was fucking beheaded…"

"Wh… What kind of person would do _that?_" Tanjiro said, wide-eyed.

Murphy ground his teeth as he touched his straw hat, sweat dripping down his brow. "Another one of us… is now gone…"

"D-Don't tell me that Monokuma actually ate his head!" Arashi exclaimed. "Th-There's no way he'd eat human flesh, right?!"

"Oh, I'll have you know, we bears don't mind feasting on you humans!" Monokuma replied. "I mean, I prefer salmon and berries, but hey, if it means I get to live longer, I'll gladly fill my guts with yours!"

"Th-That is beyond messed up…" Sorao said. "And did you really have to humiliate the guy before killing him?"

"Indeed… It is a most unfitting ordeal for the man…" Haruyuki uttered, his voice showing a little fear. "I suppose that was the purpose, however… Neither execution did not finish without bereaving the victim of all dignity…"

"Aah… This… This can't be!" Kasumi said, struggling to get the words out as she set a hand on her red mask.

"God rest his soul..." Sister Hikari mumbled, shedding tears.

Hikari and Maiha said nothing, but their faces could not hide the shock that they now felt from witnessing the bloody sight. Meanwhile, Kumi had begun to weep once more, his face hidden by the hood attached to his light-brown cloak, having fallen to his knees. Mari walked about here and there, as if compelled to move, but notwithstanding her calm countenance, it was clear that she would like nothing more than to leave this dreadful courtroom and go back outside, where she found peace, however short it might be.

"Well, now, I'm glad that you guys enjoyed the Ultimate Waiter's last service as much as I did!" Monokuma said. "Sorry that we didn't leave you any leftovers, though. His head was just too tasty to resist! I'll let you have my Chinese leftovers from last night, though, so everything's all right."

"Sh-Shut up! Stop talking about that already!" Masashi exclaimed as he looked furiously at the bear. "Don't you feel bad that you've caused four of us to die?!"

"Hmm? Why do you think I'm supposed to feel bad?" Monokuma said, tilting his head a little. "Abraham did the crime, and you guys caught him, so I simply followed the rules and punished him."

"That's nothing more than a stupid excuse!" Masashi responded. "You're the one that forced Abraham to kill Futaba!"

"Ah, but is that _true?_" Monokuma replied. "Sure, this is a killing game, but even if I present you with some obstacles, you always have the choice of not killing. Abraham could've just told you the truth about his eating disorder, and things would've been different for him, yes?"

"That… is true," Faye said sorrowfully. "If he'd just been open to us, then Futaba wouldn't have been killed…"

"Indeed," Haruyuki said, having regained his composure. "Abraham felt highly compelled to kill and forsake the rest of us, but in the end, he did so out of his choice. He was a victim, but not a victim without free will."

"Ugh…" Masashi groaned as he could come up with no good response. Loath as he was to admit it, Haruyuki had a point: Abraham had chosen to hide his secret and kill Futaba. He was no innocent child who did not know full well what he had been set on doing.

"Anyway, I'd normally just leave you guys here worrying about your fates and whatnot," Monokuma said, "but in this case, there's something important I've got to do!"

"There is?" Murphy asked.

"Yep! Have you forgotten about the motive?" Monokuma replied. "Now that the class trial's over, you get to have your stolen memories back!"

"O-Oh yeah!" Arashi said. "We're getting them back _now?!_"

Kumi looked up with weeping eyes, trembling. "Y-You mean you'll give me back my memories of Mom?"

Monokuma nodded blithely. "Yep! First things first, we've got to go back to the Memory Bank! Your memories are still there, and don't worry, you'll get them all back! See you there!"

The bear then disappeared.

"Well… Let's head there now," Faye said gloomily. "It's… the last part of this dreadful ordeal."

_Yes…_ Masashi thought, feeling a sense of delight. _I can remember everything about Keiko soon..._

And so the fourteen survivors silently rode the elevator back up to the main deck. After they stepped foot on the Egyptian palace once more, the ship in which their doom was to be delivered sailed away and disappeared off in the distance. The clouds that had shrouded the heavens this morning had not gone away; nay, they had grown in number, betokening another storm.

When they arrived at the Memory Bank, it looked utterly clean, Futaba's corpse and blood gone, as if the killing had never been done in the first place. Monokuma stood there waiting and clapped in delight once seeing the survivors enter.

"Now, then, go into your pods, put on the headsets, and relax!" the captain said.

Saying nothing, the fourteen did the captain's bidding and stepped into their pods. After Masashi put on the headset, the pod's lid closed, and once again, he was by himself in utter darkness.

_Some relaxation this is…_ Masashi thought as he fell asleep.

* * *

"Wakey, wakey! Time to get up now!"

Masashi opened his eyes, and for a few seconds, he simply focused on how groggy and dazed he felt. But as his mind became clearer, a certain realization came to him.

_Keiko! I can remember everything about her!_

Yes, it was not only what he had seen that night that he could remember. Every memory had been returned to him at last. He could remember playing with her when they were only kids, going shopping with her whenever she felt like it, and watching her practice dancing for her school club. They were all rather unremarkable activities, but never had he felt glad to remember the unremarkable.

_It's true… You never miss the water until the well runs dry._

Masashi let out a chuckle in delight. Thanks to this experience, he now knew not to take the simplest things for granted. It was as Abraham had said: if Monokuma could take away his memories, what else could he do to him?

_Keiko… I remember you fully now,_ Masashi thought. _And I swear to you, we'll be back together some day…_

Seeing that there was nothing else to do, Masashi then got out of his pod, most of the others having gotten out already. Once Kumi and Mari got out, Monokuma, standing in the middle of the room, made a sound meant to imitate the clearing of one's throat.

"I'm happy to say that the memory returning procedure has been successful!" Monokuma said. "You should now remember everything about your darlings!"

"Y-Yeah… I do," Faye said, her smile true. "I can remember my dear mother's face again."

"And I can remember my own mother as well," Murphy said, sounding a little merry as well. "Thank God this whole ordeal is over!"

Haruyuki chuckled. "The experience has not particularly changed me, but I will admit that it has produced a few interesting results."

"I-I don't really care, so…" Hikari said. Even with her memories back, she still kept her usual gloomy countenance, as if what she had lost had been of no worth to her.

"G-Grandpa…" Arashi mumbled, eyes watering. "I… I can't believe I forgot about you! I… I swear I'll never forget you again!"

Sayua scoffed. "Not that I care much about my old man, but I guess it's good to get back what was taken from me."

"Ah… So it was my little sister…" Mari mumbled as she glanced elsewhere. "I can't say I could've figured that out…"

Kumi, on the other hand, was surprisingly quiet, his expression awfully still and wan.

"M-Mom…? D-Dad? I-I heard something weird earlier..." he mumbled, looking downwards. "I-I don't want to be alone... C-Could I stay with you tonight?"

"Kumi? Are you all right?" Faye asked. but the storyteller did not answer her, his gaze distant as if he were in his own world.

"Wh-What's going on? Wh-Why aren't you saying anything? A-And why does it smell so weird?" Kumi whimpered, his voice shaken. The more he spoke, the greater the fear in his voice grew, and his expression grew so uneasy that the others began to back away from him, as if fearing lest he attack them.

"What in the world...?" Murphy said. "What's he saying?"

"H-Has the memory returning procedure done something to him?" Tanjiro said, looking at him with dread.

"No way!" Monokuma said, raising his paws in protest. "It's been tested many times and has been proven to be 100% safe!"

"M-Mom! D-Dad! Wh-Why aren't you saying anything?!" Kumi continued, now clutching his head with both hands, his face full of unease. "I-I don't want to be alone right now! Th-There's something weird going on! Mom! Dad! Where are you?! What's going on—"

His odd rambling, however, was stopped when Sister Hikari suddenly embraced him, after which Kumi let out a small gasp.

"There, there, Kumi," Sister Hikari said gently.

"S-Sister Hikari?" Kumi said, looking dazed, though it appeared that his grip on reality was returning. "I-Is that you?"

"That's right," she said, showing a winning smile. "Don't worry, Kumi… even if you're frightened by what's befallen us up to now, I'm here for you."

"T-Truly?" Kumi said, looking uncertainly at her. "Y-You won't leave me?"

"Of course not," she answered, nodding. "I'll stay by your side, and nothing bad shall happen to you."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

"Sister Hikari... I… I… _I...!_"

And it was then that Kumi buried his head in her lap, weeping aloud. Though startled at first, the good nun nonetheless let him weep as she softly rubbed the back of his head and muttered words of comfort, chuckling a little. Meanwhile, the others, staring at the scene dumbstruck, grew easier in their expressions, though still confused as to what had just happened.

"What in the world was that?" Murphy asked, scratching his head as Kumi's weeping grew quiet.

"I don't know exactly, but I don't think it was his usual behavior..." Masashi said, eyeing the storyteller concernedly. On one hand, he was relieved to see that Sister Hikari was soothing him, but on the other hand, the confusion that had sprouted when Kumi had begun to say those odd things still needed to be explained.

"Yeah, it sounded far more serious than that..." Faye said. "It's almost as if he had seen something before him that none of us could see..."

"But that sure sounds like a fantasy to me!" Kasumi said blithely. "So if you ask me, there's no need to worry about it!"

"For once, I agree," Sayua said, crossing her arms as she flicked a lock of her blond hair. "Let's face it: he's a dumbass who believes in fairies and all that baloney. That was likely his special way of showing how much this whole killing game had scared him. And so he naturally cried out to his parents, hoping that they could save his sorry ass."

"Well... I can certainly see Kumi fall back on his parents for support if they were here," Murphy answered. "He hasn't acted like that before, so maybe that truly was a one-time incident. After all, he watched two executions. God knows that kind of thing is bound to have a bad effect on him."

"Exactly. That's why we shouldn't waste our time on him," Sayua replied.

"I don't know... There's still something off about him, don't you think?" Mari said. "But in any case, maybe we should talk about it later. Aren't there more important matters at hand?"

"Yeah, there's one thing." It was Sorao, who looked, on the whole, unconcerned about the matter with Kumi, who had managed to calm down at last. He looked at the captain, who too had looked uninterested in what he had just seen. "Hey, Captain Monokuma. We have our memories back, but what about Lady Inoshishi's and Abraham's memories? Are they still in the pods?"

_Ah, that's right…_ Masashi thought. The memories had been the very reason why Futaba had come here. In the end, she had not been able to see any of her darling's memories, having been ambushed by Abraham.

At Sorao's question, Monokuma shook his head. "Sorry, buddy, but they're no longer there! You see, they've been erased!"

"What…? 'Erased'?" Kumi said, his voice still shaken, even though he was no longer in a frantic state. "You mean, you—"

"Threw them in the trash? Yep, I deleted all the memory data in their pods after the procedure was done," Monokuma answered. "What's the point of having them there, when their owners are now dead? Of course, I have copies of them in my database, but they're for my eyes only!"

The group looked confusedly at one another as they thought about Monokuma's deletion of the memories. On one hand, it was rather saddening to hear that the records of the two dead students' precious memories were gone, never to be seen by anyone other than a mad bear. But on the other hand, perhaps it was for the best that they were gone. Those memories were about their darlings, and so they might have contained certain things that the two would have preferred to keep secret.

In any case, the memories were now gone. There was nothing that they could do about it now.

"Anyway, the returning procedure was thankfully shorter than the extraction, and it's now about six o'clock," Monokuma said. "I feel hungry for some Thai food, so I'll see you later!"

After Monokuma left, the group for a moment stood in silence, taking in what had just happened. They were relieved that their memories were now back, and so any stress and anxiety that had come from their loss should be gone now. And yet, the returning had come at a great cost of the loss of two friends. Masashi had wanted all his memories of Keiko back, but he had hoped that there was a way to do so without any death.

_Then again, it's like Abraham said: it's pointless to muse about what might have been,_ he thought. _All that matters is how things are now._

And right now, there were only fourteen of them left. They had begun as eighteen, and Masashi dreaded to think about how many they would end as.

* * *

**Chapter 2 - The Lost Darling Beneath the Sands - END**

**Surviving Students: 14**

**1\. Masashi Kousaki - Ultimate Lucky Student**

**2\. Atsushi Morokuzu - Ultimate Archaeologist (DEAD)**

**3\. Faye Nirigiri - Ultimate Patissier**

**4\. Maiha Hanazawa - Ultimate Competitive Ballroom Dancer**

**5\. Takumi Takamitsu - Ultimate Storyteller**

**6\. Kasumi Ayukawa - Ultimate Phantom Thief**

**7\. Abraham Zargari - Ultimate Waiter (DEAD)**

**8\. Futaba Inoshishi - Ultimate Figure Skater (DEAD)**

**9\. Arashi Seiya - Ultimate Pyrotechnician**

**10\. Hikari Fey - Ultimate Spirit Channeler**

**11\. Sayua Tomi - Ultimate Cheerleader**

**12\. Tanjiro Urata - Ultimate Historical Novelist**

**13\. Hikari Shinto - Ultimate Nun**

**14\. Haruka Minami - Ultimate Clown (DEAD)**

**15\. Murphy O'Hagan - Ultimate Potato Farmer**

**16\. Haruyuki Kanagawa - Ultimate Art Critic**

**17\. Sorao Mineta - Ultimate Celesta Player**

**18\. Mari Anzai - Ultimate Phenologist**

* * *

**And so the second chapter ends!**

**Here we must say goodbye to Abraham, whom I don't particularly like as a person, but whom I find rather interesting as a character. He has an interesting reason for putting up his prideful front, and it would have also been interesting to see how he would have interacted with the cast if his eating disorder had come to light earlier. Sadly, that's Abraham's main flaw: he would never willingly admit to having such a condition, fearing lest he be seen as weak.**

**Now, I would like to thank Prince PokePersona for sending me Futaba Inoshishi, and Shirasaur for sending me Abraham Zargari. They were both very interesting characters to work with, and even though they're dead now, I hope that you'll stick around and see how the rest of this story goes!**

**Next time, the third chapter begins, and the aftermath of Abraham's killing will play out. Now, then, as usual, I'd like to hear your predictions for future chapters. What do you think will be the death order for this story? And how many survivors do you think there will be in the end? After all, this is a cast of 18 (and not the usual 16), so I'd like to know what your expectations are.**


	25. Thwarted by the Masked Player (1)

**Chapter 3: Thwarted by the Masked Player**

Masashi woke up to the sound of waves crashing against the ship. The storm had indeed already come when they had left the Memory Bank and made their way to the dining room. Masashi had had no trouble in falling asleep, however; the cause had been both the mental exhaustion from the latest two deaths, and the relief from fully remembering his younger sister.

_Keiko… Wherever you may be, I hope you're all right…_

Masashi shuddered as the thought that Monokuma might do something foul to her arose. It had been days since Monokuma had revealed that something awful had happened to the eighteen participants' loved ones, and even now, the mystery of what had happened was no clearer than before. All that had been revealed was that a group called Brightmere Research was behind all this, and it had access to such technology as could bereave one of certain memories. What kind of group were he and the others going up against to escape this place?

As Masashi got up from his bed, he saw a certain note lying on the counter. It was the same note that Abraham had given him right before his execution. He had originally planned to read it with the others after last night's supper, but the others had insisted that it be done later, feeling all too tired from the class trial's ordeal. Even now, he had not read it yet. All that he knew was that the contents had not changed Abraham's mind about killing. Whatever it might be, he thought it best to read it with the others.

After he got ready, Masashi left his room, the note in his gray jacket's pocket. Though it was only morning, the scene already looked rather dreary, the clouds shrouding the heavens, the air chilly. The storm's strong rain and wind having abated for now, a drizzle came down from the great opening in the ceiling, soaking the blossoms that lay peacefully there. Though there was peace within this ship, there was still danger without, the sea's restless waves and winds harrying any seafarers.

He made his way to the dining room and saw four others: Faye, Mari, Arashi, and Haruyuki.

"Good morning," Masashi said. "How are you doing?"

"I, uh, feel a bit better from last night's ordeal," Faye answered, some uncertainty still remaining in her tone, however. "I can't say that the weather's all that swell and pleasant, though."

"Yep… the storm's gone for now, but I think it'll come back even stronger," Mari said, swaying a little.

"At the very least, we have those emergency supplies in case things should go south!" Arashi said.

"Yeah, thanks to Futaba…" Masashi sighed as memories of the lady popped up in his mind. "I still can't believe she's gone…"

"Neither can I…" Faye said. "She tried to help us as best as she could in this situation, and she even reassured us that help would come. She being our leader, I felt that we could trust her to handle the situation. And now that she's gone… I'm starting to wonder whether help will ever come."

Haruyuki chuckled. "You are losing hope already, I see."

"What? No, no, I'm not!" Faye insisted, looking a little surprised. "It's only that… I truly thought that Atsushi and Haruka would be the only poor unfortunate victims of this twisted game… And yet... not only Futaba but also Abraham are now dead... and we still are no nearer to getting out of here…"

"Yeah, no denying that…" Masashi said. "It'll be a wonder if help comes soon, now that the weather's rocky in this part of the sea."

Just then, a few others came into the dining room. Sayua and Tanjiro sat together as usual, as did Sister Hikari and Kumi. After Sister Hikari headed off to the kitchen, Kumi walked up to Masashi.

"G-Good morning, Sir Masashi…" Kumi said, smiling weakly and holding tightly his beloved teddy bear. "H-How are you?"

"I'm all right," Masashi answered. "How about you? I hope you didn't have any problems after yesterday's… incident."

Kumi sighed as he lowered down at the teddy bear. "I-I still can't believe it…' Lady Futaba and Sir Abraham aren't here anymore…"

"Oh, well… I'm sure that Abraham's the last victim of this twisted game," Masashi said, trying to sound reassuring. "We saw what happened to him. There's no way any of us would want to end up like that."

But Masashi knew full well that such an expectation was foolish at this point. Of course he hoped that another killing would not happen, but there was no denying that any of them might become a murderer, as long as Monokuma's offer looked tempting enough. He had learned it the hard way from Atsushi's murder, and Futaba's murder was another reminder of the painful truth.

"I… I hope so…" Kumi said as he rubbed his teddy bear's head. "At least the monsters weren't there last night… There were only friendly fairies when I woke up."

"Oh, really? See, that's a sign that things will get better," Masashi said, putting on a smile.

Not long after, Murphy, Maiha, and Sorao came into the room without saying anything more than the usual greeting. Once Sister Hikari came out from the kitchen, Hikari, the ever so gloomy spirit medium came in. Masashi bade her good morning, to which she reacted with a sullen expression.

"G-Good morning," she said unenthusiastically. "Wh-What do you want from me? Y-You're not going to ask me whether my powers work, a-are you?"

"Uh, no? I only wanted to say good morning," Masashi answered, intrigued by how mistrustful of him she seemed. "Why do you say that, anyway?"

"Y-You don't think I remember? L-Last time, after the first trial, you guys asked methat…" Hikari answered, glancing away from him. "A-And my answer remains the s-same…"

"Really?" Sister Hikari said with a concerned look. "You still can't access your powers at all?"

"O-Of course not… Nothing's changed," Hikari said. "I-I don't know why this is happening. Th-There's nothing on my body b-blocking my powers, so it must be something else…"

"Huh, is that so?" Masashi scratched his head, wondering what this meant. The blocking of her powers must have been due to Brightmere Research, but what had it done to make Hikari unable to use her powers? It would be one thing if she wore something like a bracelet that Brightmere Research had designed to suppress her abilities, but given what Hikari had said, the mastermind behind this must have used another method to do so.

_Too bad none of us know about the science behind spirit channeling,_ Masashi thought. _If we did, __maybe we could help her recover those powers…_

"I-I don't really care, anyway…" Hikari said, looking downwards. "Th-There's no good in my powers."

"'No good'?" Sister Hikari said. "What makes you think so?"

It was one thing to be reluctant to use them because they tired her out easily, but from her tone, she seemed to loathe them greatly.

"Does it matter what her reason is?" Murphy interjected. "There's no need to pester her about her powers if she doesn't like talking about them. Just leave her alone, I say."

"Th-Thanks…" Hikari mumbled, though not looking at the farmer in the eye.

"Anyway, Hikari, you always sit by yourself," Masashi said. "Maybe you should sit with us for today."

Hikari, however, shook her head profusely. "N-No, thanks… I-I'd much prefer not to be with any of you."

And with that, she headed off to another table, Masashi wondering whence her wary attitude had come. Meanwhile, Sister Hikari showed a rather troubled look as she eyed the spirit medium. For a few seconds, her gaze was fixed at her, but eventually, she shook her head and set her eyes back on Kumi.

"Hey, look who's come!" Sayua said, pointing at the door. The last one to come was none other than the phantom thief herself, who still wore her usual outfit. "It's Red Mask—oh, wait, that's not right… It's Kasumi Ayukawa!"

"A-Are you still going to rub it in my face that you guys know my true name now?" Kasumi said, looking bewildered.

"Pretty much," Sayua said as she sipped her can of lemonade. "Because of you, the class trial took far longer than it should have."

"Look, I'm sorry that I lied to you guys, really!" Kasumi said. "But it's just that I couldn't let you know my real name!"

"You know, if you wanted to hide your phantom thief persona's true identity from us, maybe it wasn't a good idea to introduce yourself as Red Mask," Mari pointed out. "You could've lied and said that you were the Ultimate Model or the Ultimate Athlete or something like that. None of us would have had reason not to believe you."

"Well, I thought the one behind this wanted me to be in my phantom thief persona!" Kasumi replied as she set a finger on her masquerade mask, her tone as chirpy as usual. "That's why I introduced myself to you as such!"

"Given that we know your name now, though, it wasn't a smart decision, if you ask me..." Murphy said.

"What made you think she was smart in the first place?" Sayua said snidely.

"Sheesh, tough crowd I'm talking to here…" Kasumi said as she smiled once more. "A-Anyway, you won't tell anyone else about my true identity once we get out of here, right?"

"Oh, I most certainly will."

It was none other than Maiha Hanazawa, who had answered with an irked expression. Upon hearing her say so, a few of the others grew quiet, staring at the ballroom dancer in confusion.

"Hey, come on!" Kasumi replied, trying to keep up her smile. "We're all stuck here, aren't we? Don't you think you can set that aside?"

Maiha scoffed, her frown deepening. "Why ought I to go along with your request? You're one of the worst commoners that I have had the misfortune to meet. For your lack of intelligence, you resort to taking that which is rightfully not yours. Therefore, I've absolutely no reason to turn a blind eye for you."

Kasumi winced a little. "But I've never killed anyone—"

"And what if you haven't? You still have harmed others with your foul thefts, as the very deed of stealing from another is damage in and of itself," Maiha replied, crossing her arms as she gave the thief a condescending look.

"But—"

"It's a wonder that the late Inoshishi let you be," Maiha continued, her tone growing bolder. "Had I been in charge, I most certainly would've locked you in your room, at the very least. In fact, such a measure ought to be adopted as soon as possible."

"What? What do you mean?" Sister Hikari asked.

Maiah scoffed as she raised her right hand. "Must I explain it to you? Oh, very well... It has been clear that the foul thief wishes to hide her true identity from the world. Even if I did not plan to tell the authorities upon our escape, one of you might secretly plan to do so as well."

"So even if we swore to keep it secret," Mari said, "there's a chance that one of us would blab to the police later."

"I'm glad to see that you understand my point, commoner," Maiha replied. "We all know that her name is Kasumi Ayukawa. And how does the saying go, again? Ah, yes... dead men tell no tales."

"Oh, so that's why you think she's a threat!" Murphy said, eyes widened.

"Y-Yeah… Monokuma doesn't need a motive to make her kill," Hikari said, looking at the thief with loathing eyes. "Sh-She already has one! I-I bet she's planning to kill one of us right now!"

"Then locking her up seems good to me!" Sayua said.

"N-No way! No way I'd ever kill you guys, even if I wanted to hide my name!" Kasumi said pleadingly as she smiled nervously, though only a few of the others looked convinced. "Really, I mean it!"

But the crowd was not fully settled on this matter. Some such as Sayua and Murphy looked to be in agreement with Maiha's stance, and others like Mari and Arashi looked unsure of whether they ought to follow her.

"Very few appear convinced by your words," Maiha replied, looking at her condescendingly. "It's not surprising, after all. The very nature of your so-called Ultimate talent shows a willingness to deceive others. Hence, we've very little reason to believe you now—"

"Uh, guys? Could we hold this off for a while?"

It was none other than Faye, who did not seem to sway toward either side, her face showing concern about a different matter instead.

"I understand that this is an important issue," the pastry cook said, "but don't you think we should talk about it later? It's breakfast right now."

"Ah, thank you for reminding us, Faye," Sister Hikari said. "Yes, I agree with you here. We all need some time to think about this."

"Y-Yeah, that's right!" Kasumi said, still trembling a little. "N-Now's not the right time to talk about this!"

"Yeah... Lady Inoshishi wouldn't want us to skip breakfast over something like this..." Sorao said, who had noticeably not spoken a whole lot since he had come here, looking slightly tired.

Maiha scoffed as she leaned back on her chair. "Very well. We shall continue our talk on this matter. I hope that by that point, you who still have doubt about my proposal will have realized your error."

Masashi sighed in relief as the others agreed to Faye's suggestion. _Thank goodness things have settled for now. __Things were starting to get rather heated._

"All right, then, could someone help me set the dishes on each table? The one who usually does it can, well… no longer help out..." Faye said, growing quieter upon mentioning the late waiter.

"Ah, well, then," Sister Hikari said, "let me help—"

"Let me help you, Miss Nirigiri!" Arashi said excitedly, getting out of his seat at once. "I can handle this without a problem!"

"Well, if you really want to help, then I guess I shouldn't refuse you," Faye said, brightening up a little as she chuckled. "All right, Arashi, go right ahead."

After the dishes were set—and one near accident in which Arashi had nearly spilled the contents of Maiha's dish onto her dress, after which the lady chid him for his lack of attention—the group began its breakfast meal.

Though the fourteen members engaged in friendly chatter among one another, Masashi caught more than a few glancing at Kasumi with skeptical eyes. She said nothing in regard to that, instead blithely recalling the tale of one of her heists with Murphy and Haruyuki, the latter of whom nodded along with an amused smile. But Masashi suspected that deep down, she was not so cheerful as she now seemed; something about her attitude felt a bit off, and certainly, her usual blithesome self was not all there was to her, as Masashi could still remember her angry protest in the class trial. She was hiding something, but what exactly it was he could not tell.

_Oh, yeah, and there's _this _as well..._ Masashi thought as he felt the note in his pocket. Now seemed like the right time to read the contents of the note with the whole group.

Just as he opened his mouth, however, an annoyingly mirthful laugh rang through the room, one that chilled all the students insofar as they became silent at once.

_Oh, no…_ Masashi thought as the self-called captain showed up.

"Good morning, everyone! Lovely weather we have today, isn't it?" Monokuma began as he eyed Faye's dish. "Oh, hey, that's some delicious toast you've got there! You mind if I take a piece?"

"Wh-What? My toast?" Faye said, astounded. "If you're hungry, there's plenty of food in the kitchen."

"And that's why there's no problem for you!"

Monokuma then snatched the toast and began to chew on it, at which sight the others stared with bemusement. "Mmm… Tasty. Could use some more butter, though."

"H-How dare you take Miss Nirigiri's toast away?!" Arashi exclaimed, raising his right fist at him. "G-Give that back at once!"

"Uh, actually, I don't want it now," Faye added, looking at it with a hint of disgust. "I don't think I want to put in my mouth anything that our captain's touched."

"You see? She's given me it, so there's no problem..." Monokuma answered as he kept chewing. "Yep, no problem at all…"

"Eww…" Sayua muttered once Monokuma had let out a small burp.

"You're not that much of a gentleman, are you?" Murphy said.

"Hey, now, don't you make me out as a bad guy!" Monokuma replied. "I'm a believer of repaying debts, you see. For your efforts in the class trial and the mostly delicious piece of toast, I've decided to give you something special!"

"Wait, you don't mean…" Masashi said.

Monokuma then opened up his arms. "A whole new world is open to you here in Brightmere Mirthyard!"

"Ah, so it's another ship…" Sister Hikari said. "Well, that certainly is far greater than a piece of toast."

"And far cruddier as well," Sayua remarked. "Can't you give us some new clothes. Wearing the same dang clothes every day has become _boooooring_."

Haruyuki chuckled. "With a new area come new possibilities on how things will play out. I look forward to seeing what awaits us this time."

"Now, then, I'll let you kids check it out now," Monokuma said as he took a piece of toast from Kumi's dish.

"M-My toast!" the storyteller said.

"If you'll excuse me, I have a piece of toast to butter in my cabin. Bye-bye!"

Monokuma then disappeared, taking the toast with him. For a few seconds, all were silent at what had just happened here. Eventually, Sister Hikari spoke up.

"Well, uh, I guess we should go check that thing out," Sister Hikari said. "I don't think it's a trap, so there's no harm in checking it out, right?"

"Yeah, and maybe we'll find something useful, something that'll help us escape this place," Sorao said.

"It's unlikely, though," Murphy replied. "That'd be pretty careless of Monokuma."

"Not an optimistic fellow, are you?" Haruyuki asked.

"Hey, don't get the wrong idea. I want to think otherwise, but I've learned the hard way that this killing game's serious business," Murphy said as he scratched the back of his neck. "There's no way that the ones behind this would slip up that easily."

"M-My toast…" Kumi bemoaned, staring at his dish with watery eyes. "I can't believe that Captain Monokuma's taken it…"

"Oh, don't worry, Kumi," Sister Hikari chirped. "After we're done exploring the new ship, I'll make you a piece of toast with whatever you want on it."

"R-Really? Thanks, Sister Hikari!" Kumi said, now beaming.

"All right, then," Masashi said. "Let's meet back here after we're done looking around."

It seemed that the note would have to be read another time. In the meantime, the investigation of the new location was afoot.

* * *

Masashi was by himself, the others having gone ahead of him. Though he had given up on what Monokuma had in mind for them, the sight of the next ship on the woodland kingdom's starboard side still managed to astound him. What caught his eye at once was that nearly half of the main deck stretching all the way to the stern was covered by a structure that looked like a great cove. The rest of the deck looked like a shoreline, and by the bow was a small shallow pool of water that ebbed back and forth. Thankfully, when he walked onto the deck through the gangway, the pool was still a distance away.

Oddly enough, by the cove were what appeared to be the uppermost parts of a ship's masts. They leaned slightly to Masashi's right, as if to suggest that their ship was unsteady, and on one of the masts flew a flag that betokened at once what kind of ship this was meant to portray, as it was a skull that wore a red bandanna and was on a black background.

_This time, it's pirates, huh…_ Masashi thought.

He had, of course, never seen a pirate in the flesh before, the only pirates that he knew of coming from either the realm of former ages or the realm of fiction. Personally, it was not something that he would ever imagine himself to be in a parallel world; he much preferred being a warrior or a mage that practiced bedazzling fire magic. At least then he could stay put in one place and protect his home from any monsters. And a pirate's life hardly seemed glamorous to him, what with the constant maintenance of the ship and the lawbreaking piracy entailed.

Masashi headed into the cove, after which he found himself in a small hallway that was dimly lit by a light on the ceiling. On the walls were such decorations as skeletons dressed like typical pirates, barrels, and signs warning any unfortunate visitors from going further. On the other end of the hall were two sets of stairs. One set was on the left wall and headed down, and the other was on the right wall and headed up.

_Huh, so there are decks above the main deck this time,_ Masashi thought, now seeing the reason for the cove's great size. _I guess I'll look at the upper decks first._

He walked up the stairs and found himself in another narrow hallway. This time, however, there was light coming from an archway on the left wall near the end of the hallway. As he approached it, he also saw a door at the end that was labeled "STAFF ONLY". By the door was also a set of stairs that went up, but Masashi would rather check out what was on this deck first.

"Whoa… What's all this?" Masashi said upon peeking into the archway.

What awaited him was a great room throughout which arcade machines were strewn. Though the walls and floor were colored light gray, the bright lights from the machines livened up the room and even made Masashi want to move around; something about the lights simply forbade him to stay still for too long. There appeared to be sundry games available, ranging from racing games to platformers. On one corner of the room was a counter behind which were many different kinds of things; given the function of this room, he assumed it to be the prize counter. There were a few vending machines by the walls, some offering drinks, others simply acting as places to exchange money for arcade tokens. There were even restrooms at another corner of the room, and altogether, it felt like a rather cozy room to play games in. The whole room looked as if it were an ancient cove's room with a hint of modern civilization added.

"Hey, Masashi!" It was Arashi, who was with Murphy. Both stood by a machine in which the player was to shoot as many basketballs through a hoop. "Check it out! There are so many games offered here! I'm pretty sure I've played some of these before!"

"You have?" Masashi said.

"Yep! My grandparents would take me out to many places, and I had a lot of fun playing in arcades!" Arashi answered brightly. "How about you, Murphy?"

Murphy chuckled as he rubbed his chin. "Well, I've played some of these games, even though I've never tried the arcade versions."

"The arcade versions?" Masashi said, intrigued by his choice of words.

"Yep. Believe it or not, I like to play games in my free time," Murphy said, spouting a rather uncharacteristic grin. "I've tried out nearly every genre. Action, adventure, strategy, puzzle… you name it."

"Wow, really?" Masashi said. "If truth be told, I've never taken you to be that kind of guy. You seem more like an outdoorsy man."

Murphy clicked his tongue as his grin disappeared. "Well, it's all due to my blasted talent, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah, you're the Ultimate Potato Farmer, aren't you?" Arashi said.

"Unfortunately," Murphy answered, his tone growing somber. "I can't believe it's what I'm expected to do… There's hardly anything good about potatoes."

"You know, Murphy, I still don't get it," Masashi replied. "Why don't you like being the Ultimate Potato Farmer? It's not the most glamorous profession, sure, but you provide other people with food through your farming, don't you?"

"Yeah! And if you make other people happy, then it's something you should be proud of!" Arashi added.

Murphy frowned as he tipped the brim of his straw hat. "You think you like what you have now, but let me assure you, as time goes on, you'll grow sick of what you do."

"What?! What kind of answer is that?!" Arashi exclaimed. "I'll never get tired of fireworks! I swear it by my grandfather's name!"

The farmer only scoffed as he sat down at one of the machines. "I don't feel like talking about this anymore… I'd rather check out some of these games."

However much as Arashi protested, true to his word, Murphy said no more on the matter and ignored his demand for an explanation. Meanwhile, Masashi looked around the room some more and saw that there was a set of stairs going up. Before that, however, he headed back to the hallway and walked over to the room meant only for staff. He touched the doorknob and opened it without a problem, though opening it caused the door to make a loud creaking sound.

The room too had a few arcade machines in it, but there were also a few couches set by the corners, as well as a few appliances such as a coffee maker and a water cooler. This room must be a lounge for staff, though Masashi doubted that any staff would pop up in the flesh any time soon. It was also rather warm, which was likely due to a heater set in some part of this room, and with the cold weather and slight rain outside, even if it were ever so short, the warmth was still a relief.

"Ah… Now that hits the spot," Sayua said, sitting on the couch relaxedly as she drank a cup of coffee. Meanwhile, Tanjiro walked around the room, checking out the machines.

"Hey, guys, have you found anything?" Masashi asked.

"Oh, lots," Sayua answered. "This room's not too shabby, truly. With the heater, the comfy couch, and the coffee machine, I think I'll be coming here often."

"Uh, that's good to know, but what about anything that we can use to get out of here?" Masashi asked.

"Well… Not much, really," Tanjiro answered. "There's a closet full of tools, but that's it."

Tanjiro pointed to the door at the opposite end of the room. Masashi peeked inside and saw a somewhat small room that was cluttered with such things as brooms, loudspeakers, and a few other gadgets. The closet led to no other place, so that was about it for this part of the deck.

_Oh, yeah… I guess I should ask him about _that, Masashi thought.

Masashi nudged Tanjiro's shoulder and took him to a corner of the room so that Sayua may not hear them. "Hey, Tanjiro, aren't you bothered by what Sayua did earlier? You know, the whole thing with Kumi's teddy bear?"

Tanjiro sighed as he moved a fringe of his blue hair out of the way. "Well, of course I was bothered. I tried to talk Sayua out of hiding it somewhere in the palace, but she wouldn't listen… Then again, I suppose it was a blessing in disguise, given our witness account."

"Yeah, who would have guessed that Kasumi would run by at that time and place?" Masashi said. "Anyway, getting back to the point… if you're bothered by Sayua's theft, why are you still hanging out with her?"

"Well… For one, if I don't watch her, she'll likely do something more reckless," Tanjiro said, "and without anyone around, who knows what she might be up to?"

"Yeah, good point…" Masashi said. "But is that your only reason?"

"Hmm… If truth be told… if I stay with her, maybe she'll grow to be a bit less negative," Tanjiro answered as he nervously glanced toward the side. "From my time with her, I can tell that she's of the kind that takes feedback only from those close to her. Maybe if I spend more time with her, I can curry favor with her."

"Ah, so you think you can change Sayua into a better person?"

"Not to that extent, really… I don't think myself to be that influential. Maybe she can be a bit less self-centered, at the very least. In any case, she's certainly not as bad as _he_ has been…"

"'He'?" Masashi said. Surprisingly enough, he sensed a bit of hostility in his voice.

Tanjiro sighed, the gloom on his face growing. "I'm talking about Sorao… As he said a long while ago, we live next to each other in the same apartment block."

"Oh, right…" Masashi said, vaguely recalling what Sorao had said on the night that the killing game had begun. "You seem to have problems with him, though. Is there any reason for that?"

Upon hearing the question, Tanjiro grew squeamish, his lips quivering. "I… have my grievances with him, to put it lightly."

"Really? But he seems pretty cool and friendly..."

"You may think so, but please trust me when I say that he's not the kind of character you should much hang out with," the writer said. "He may look cool and refreshing, but—"

"Hey, Tanjiro!" It was Sayua, who looked at the writer with the same annoyed eyes as before. She extended the arm that held the cup from which she had drunk her coffee. "Make me another one, and add some more sugar to it. That's my bidding, and _you have to do it now!_"

Tanjiro sighed, looking ever so dreary from hearing her cheerleader chant. "Ah, right… I guess I'd better get to it."

Masashi could only pity him as he left the room, bidding the novelist good luck as he was left to tend to the cheerleader. He wondered what Tanjiro had been about to tell him, but he figured that he could talk with him about it later.

Though interested in trying some of the arcade's games out, Masashi was more curious about where the stairs by the staff lounge led. He walked up and found himself in a hallway that looked nothing at all like an arcade, instead having the dark forbidding feeling that the main deck gave off.

There were only two rooms, each on opposite sides, and the door on the right was labeled "STAFF ONLY". What awaited him behind this door was a small white room whose walls were lined up with switchboards and panelboards. There were even a few power panels on the wall opposite to the door.

_Yeah, nothing exciting here..._ Masashi thought. _I'm not even sure how they each work, so it's best not to fiddle with them..._

He headed back to the hallway and went into the other room on this deck. To his surprise, he was greeted by a wide room that had a great window on the wall opposite to the door. Through the room were strewn many chests, most of which were open and showing nothing of worth. There were even a few maps hung on the walls, none of which referred to places that Masashi recognized; he assumed that the amusement park designers had simply made them up.

On the wall at the other end of the room was the opening of a tunnel that continued deeper. What was more noteworthy was that there was water flowing through the tunnel, the flowing making a tranquil sound such that one might sit by and listen to it all time while thinking about life.

"Ah, that's a water slide." It was Mari, who had been wandering around the room. "I asked Monokuma earlier. Apparently, it goes all the way down to a pool in the lower second deck."

"Wh-What?! The slide's that high?!" Masashi exclaimed, glancing with awe at the slide.

"Well, it twists and turns in a lot of places, and there are some lights inside, so it's not as if one fell straight down in the darkness," Mari answered.

"Still… I don't really like the sound of that…" Masashi replied, shuddering at the thought of sliding down the tunnel. "If I feel like it later, I'll try it out."

"Keep in mind that it'll send you into the pool if you try it out later," Mari replied as she set a finger on her chin. "I don't think you'd want to swim in those clothes."

"Yeah, of course not!" Masashi replied. "I have some swimwear in my room."

"Oh, but I've got something even better for you!"

Just then, however, Monokuma popped out of nowhere.

"Oh... it's you," Mari said, her voice's chirpiness dropping. "Is there something you want from us?"

"Oh, no, no! In fact, once you hear what I have to say, it'll be you that wants something from _me!_" Monokuma began.

Masashi looked askance at the bear. "What...? What are you talking about?"

"Believe it or not, your dear captain always had an eye for working with clothes!" Monokuma replied. "My old man always insisted that I focus on carpentry, but that's just not my kind of thing. I want everyone in the world to know of my charm, and a few buildings won't do the trick. That's why I've begun my own clothing line!"

"Uh, all right..." Masashi said, utterly befuddled. "How is that relevant, though?"

"Well, since I heard you guys mention swimwear, I thought it was a good opportunity to show off one of my first products! Here, take a look at this!"

Monokuma then held up high a black pair of swimming trunks that had small versions of his face all over it. "Aw, isn't it beautiful to see me on this thing? Wanna try it on?"

"N-No way!" Masashi responded at once, pointing at the bear with frustration. He had already foreseen that Monokuma would simply waste his time with his usual hogwash, but that thing's very sight was too much. "I'm not interested in that thing at all! And there's no way I'll ever become the first person to wear something with your face on it!"

"Oh, is that so? Are you sure you want to pass up on this special offer?" Monokuma asked coyly.

"Special offer? How much is that thing, anyway?" Mari asked.

"Not much, really! I'm sure you guys can afford to pay one million yen."

"_O-One million yen for those trunks?!_" Masashi exclaimed, growing more and more flabbergasted. "You know, the more I hear about your clothing line, the more I think it's a failure in every way!"

Monokuma growled as he showed his claws. "Why, you... You think that my Monokuma brand ought to come cheap, then?!"

"It'll at least get people to actually think about buying that thing," Mari replied.

"Grr...! Well, I can see that it was a waste of time to try to sell my luxury clothes to you!" Monokuma said, feigning grumpiness. "I'll be on my way now! I'm off to meet someone of better taste!"

Monokuma then disappeared, thankfully not leaving his shorts behind.

"Well, that was a great waste of time," Masashi said. "It's bad enough that he's trapped us all here, but now he comes showing off his ridiculous clothing."

"Yeah, I don't care much for the design, either," Mari said, nodding along. "Can you imagine what I'd look like if I wore a swimsuit with a Monokuma theme?"

"I'd rather not defile your image," Masashi said, a sudden feeling of disgust setting in.

Seeing that there was nothing else on this deck, he headed back down to the main deck, climbing down two sets of stairs. After going down the stairs leading to the lower decks, he wound up at one end of a hallway, from which end he could see yet another intersection. As he arrived, he saw three ways to go forth. The first was to go straight through the hallway, which led to a door at the other end. The second was to go through the "STAFF ONLY' door that was set where the hallway continued. And the third was to go into the room on the right wall, which room was labeled "Pirates' Rest Spot" by the sign above the door.

"_Pirates' Rest Spot"? I wonder what's in that room,_ Masashi thought before he headed inside.

As it turned out, the room was nothing more than a small dining room that still used the cove's light gray aesthetic. There were a few wooden tables scattered around, benches used instead of chairs, and there was a counter behind which a cashier would normally stand. But there was no one here but Sorao and Faye.

"Is there even anything available to use here?" Masashi asked.

Faye scratched her cheek. "Well… there's some more kitchen equipment as well as some more cooking ingredients. I guess that's kind of useful."

Masashi stared at the menu above the counter. "Wow, look at all the options available on the menu... Anchovies, cod, salmon… and yet there's no one to take any orders. Kind of a shame that there's no one working here."

"Well, at least we're lucky that Monokuma supplies us with food and other supplies regularly, I suppose," Faye said.

"Yeah…" Sorao sighed as he shook his head. "Yeah, it's a good thing we're all still alive..."

"Hey, are you all right?" Masashi asked the musician.

Sorao looked at him with a slight smile. "Yeah, man… I'm only a little tired, that's all. I didn't sleep too well last night, see. I couldn't stop thinking about _her_…"

_Ah… he still must be recovering from Futaba's death…_ Masashi thought, noticing that Sorao looked a little tired in his eyes. _Then again, they were lovers… I can't imagine how it'd feel if I found love, but were bereft of it later..._

"You know, I should make you a small treat later," Faye said. "After everything that's happened, I don't blame you for not feeling as energetic."

"Oh, uh… thanks, Faye, but you really don't have to," Sorao answered. "As I said, I'm all right. I'll be back on my feet in no time."

"Still, you ought to have a treat," Faye insisted. "It's the least that I can do."

"Hmm… If that's what you want, then I suppose it'd be wrong to refuse." Sorao then widened his smile, looking at the pastry cook with delight. "Yeah... Now that I think about it, a treat _will_ help! After we're done looking around, cook me whatever's in your mind. I'd love to have a taste of your delicious cooking once more."

Faye smiled. "Now _that's_ what I want to hear from you."

_Well, I'm glad to see that he's feeling better now,_ Masashi thought. _I guess he'll be all right for now._

Masashi left and headed back to the intersection. Behind the "STAFF ONLY" door was another hallway, but this time, he saw no other intersections, the hallway utterly straightforward. There were two doors on the left wall, but what was inside the first one was nothing but a storage room full of boxes and other nautical equipment.

_Nothing much of use here..._ Masashi thought. _I should check out the other room now._

He headed into the second door in this hallway. Instead of a comfortable lounge, however, the room was cluttered with many such things as mannequin stands in pirate clothing and unsteady towers of old treasure chests. Masashi walked a few steps in and then turned to the left, only to trip over something.

"You ought to look before you go, commoner." It was Maiha, who was accompanied by Sister Hikari. The ballroom dancer looked at Masashi with condescending eyes and crossed arms as Masashi got back up and saw that what he had tripped over was a small box.

"Now, now, I don't think we should lay any blame on him," Sister Hikari said as softly as always. "With so much stuff in this room, it's rather hard to go through this room without tripping or bumping into something."

"Ugh... What is this place, anyway?" Masashi asked as he rubbed his head.

"I assume that it is a storage room," Maiha said. "The ones who put these things here were obviously thoughtless. This room is an utter pigsty."

"Well, I can't say that I care much for how things are organized," Sister Hikari said. "I would clean it up, but I suppose it would take a long while… and there are other things that I would rather do."

"Yeah, that I understand," Masashi said. "Maybe if my younger sister were here, it would be no problem to tidy this place up."

"Your younger sister?" Sister Hikari said. "Ah, is she good at cleaning?"

Masashi chuckled. "Oh, she's more than that! She's the Ultimate Maid!"

"Really?" Maiha said, eyes widened. "What is her name?"

"I don't know whether you've heard of her, but her name's Keiko," Masashi answered. "She's working at some rich man's mansion. At least, she's _supposed_ to be…"

"Ah… is that so?" Maiha said, who grew quieter as she set her hands together.

"Hmm? Is something the matter?" Sister Hikari asked.

"Nothing that concerns you, commoner," Maiha answered, her usual sharp tone returning.

"Uh, all right…" Masashi said, wondering what she had thought about. "Anyway, why are you two together? I don't usually see you like this."

Maiha scoffed as she looked elsewhere. "The foolish nun here has tried to convince me to drop my harsh stance against the idiotic thief."

"I simply think that we ought to give her a chance," Sister Hikari explained. "I understand why you're so skeptical toward her, as she has unfortunately the great sin of theft many times."

"Then why do you insist that we let her be?"

"Well… even with her transgressions, I believe that she is earnest in her insistence that she will not kill," Sister Hikari answered. "We ought to give her a chance to show that she stands by her word."

"Hmph. Is that all you have to say, commoner? Such carelessness will lead to your end," Maiha said as she touched a lock of her red hair. "I've shown why we ought not to let Kasumi Ayukawa be for the remainder of our time here. She's simply too dangerous to keep around. Do you not agree with me, commoner?"

"What, me?" Masashi said as soon as Maiha glanced toward him. "Well… I don't know. On one hand, I get what you're saying. Kasumi has a pretty strong motivation to make sure that her true identity should be kept secret. But on the other hand, maybe she really won't kill if we let her be. I've never really gotten the impression that she's not hesitant to do murder if need be."

Maiha sighed, crossing her arms. "Have you somehow forgotten that she is a phantom thief? She's had experience beguiling others into doing what she wants them to do. If you feel at all sympathetic toward her, then you have already fallen into her trap."

"I…"

Masashi fell silent. He hated to admit it, but Maiha had a pretty good point about Kasumi. She had a strong motivation to win the killing game, and simply beseeching the others to trust in her hardly sounded convincing. In comparison to Sister Hikari's suggestion that they leave her alone, Maiha's solution to this problem seemed like the better one to maintain peace and security within the group. With it, there would be no more problems from Kasumi, and the peace would be kept.

"Well..." he said, but he could not continue. Though he could understand her reasoning, Masashi felt that after everything he had gone through, it was best not to come to a decision until he got more information on this. The reasons to mistrust Kasumi had been given, but Masashi had not heard from the other side as much, and so it seemed too hasty to decide without talking with Kasumi first.

In any case, his lack of a definitive answer apparently displeased the ballroom dancer, as her frown deepened.

"Hmph. You still are uncertain, I see. And here I thought that you had enough sense to see that I am right," she said. "Well, then, later on, if you still have not realized your foolishness... then I will gladly wipe off that uncertainty off your face."

Finishing her declaration, Maiha stepped out of the room.

"She sure is rather sure of herself, isn't she?" Sister Hikari said, her tone full of astonishment.

"Yeah… she really doesn't like Kasumi," Masashi said. "Even if she changes her mind about Kasumi's punishment, I don't think she'll ever grow to like her."

"Well, it'd be ideal if we all got along, but realistically, I'm not the kind of person that will force others to like one another," Sister Hikari said, setting a hand on her right cheek. "Anyway, Masashi, I'll look around this room a bit more. Maiha and I took only a short glance, so there may be something of use here."

"All right, then, I'll leave it up to you."

Masashi left the room and headed back to the intersection from before. There was only one place that he had not checked yet, so he headed down the stairs to the lower second deck.

"Whoa… What a sight this is."

Most of this deck was made up of water; that was to say, the right side of the deck was a swimming pool that was accompanied by a few chairs by the side and a great tube that was slightly above the pool water. It must be the end of the water slide that he had seen at the upper third deck. On the other half of this deck was a curved course of water in which was parked a boat that looked like a small pirate's ship, its black flag showing a skull and crossbones. Amazingly enough, that part of the deck continued upwards at a moderate slant, and the height in which it stopped slanting was rather high. That the deck was essentially split into two floors explained why the trip down the stairs had gone longer than he had expected. From where he was, Masashi could not tell what this deck's upper section was, but he guessed that it had nothing else to check out and was made only for the looping watercourse.

"Ah! Sir Masashi!" It was Kumi, who waved at him while he stood at the section between the watercourse and the pool, and he was accompanied by Haruyuki and Hikari.

"Oh, hey, Kumi," Masashi said as the three approached him. "What's up?"

"Well, I was thinking that with how watery this place is," Kumi said gleefully, eyes glinting, "we can go hunting for water fairies now!"

"Oh, really?" Masashi said, who had expected him to say something about fantastic creatures. "You couldn't catch water fairies earlier?"

"There is a pool on the first ship, but it's not that large," Kumi answered. "Water fairies like to gather in places where there's fresh water, which is why we don't see a lot of them near the sea. With all this water, a lot of water fairies should come here sooner or later! Maybe we can see some of them and be blessed with their protective magic! Water fairies are very helpful, you see, and one time, they even helped the great hero Alfred in his journey to seek a legendary sword..."

As the storyteller continued his tale of the water fairies, Haruyuki chuckled, hands in his black coat's pockets, and leaned toward Hikari, speaking quietly. "It is rather interesting, is it not? How he derives value from such a place as this... How he draws excitement from these calm, tranquil waters… How he stumbles onto a new tale to tell in a matter of seconds..."

"M-More like 'weird', if you ask me…" Hikari mumbled, putting her hands in her white kimono's sleeves. "I wish that he knocked it off…"

"Is that so?" Haruyuki replied quietly. "I wish that the setting of his next tale were more fantastic. Perhaps a setting like floating islands in the heavens would be interesting to explore. What do you think, Hikari?"

"I-I don't really have an opinion about it… All I know is that he'll still put his stupid fairies in it somehow," Hikari said.

As Kumi, apparently unaware of their commentary, continued to tell his tale to his two companions, Masashi noticed that Kasumi was far off from the pool, leaning on a wall. Wondering what she was up to, he quietly left the three and approached her.

"Oh, hey, Masashi!" Kasumi said with her usual blithesome voice, smiling. "Good to see you!"

"Yeah, likewise," Masashi replied. "What are you up to right now?"

"Ah, nothing much, really!" Kasumi answered. "I was simply thinking about one of my former heists."

"Really? Why that of all things?"

"Ooh, well, one time, I was after a valuable broach stored in a museum," Kasumi began, her tone growing in excitement. "You see, this broach belonged to a famous pirate, and an archaeology team had discovered a grave with his remains in it. They sent the treasures in the grave to the museum, and once I'd heard about it, I couldn't help but send the curator my calling card!"

"And did you get away with it?"

Kasumi giggled as she covered her mouth with her hand. "Naturally! Those silly guards tried to use thermal imaging goggles. They figured that I wouldn't be able to sneak around the museum." She giggled again. "But I found a way to use that against them, so I got the broach in no time! Oh, man, you should've seen the look on their faces!"

"I think I can imagine well enough how they felt…" Masashi said, admittedly impressed by her deed. "You know, Kasumi, with how much you seem to like to be free and to steal treasure, I think you'd enjoy being a pirate."

"What, _really?_" Kasumi tilted her head a little, sounding a little less chirpy. "Sure, I guess it's fun to dress like a pirate… but to be one? Nah, I'll pass on that."

Masashi looked puzzledly at her. "Huh? Why?"

"Pirates aren't that much like phantom thieves, you know," Kasumi said, the usual glee in her face now disappearing. "They may be after treasure as well, but they're willing to use violence and even kill if need be."

"Oh… So you won't ever kill, I see," Masashi said.

Kasumi nodded. "That's right. I've never killed anyone, not even in my heists. Valuable as all the treasures I've stolen are, they're incomparable to life itself. Once one takes a life, one can never give it back."

"You wouldn't kill, even if your own life were in danger?"

"If it ever got to that point, then it would mean I've made a great mistake somewhere," she answered, setting a hand on her red masquerade mask. "Thankfully, things have never gotten that bad, so I've never had to think about it."

"Huh… I see…"

Given how oddly serious she sounded, Masashi could not but feel compelled to think that she meant every word that she said. That she kill no one in her heists was one of her principles, and given how much she loved being a phantom thief, Masashi could not see her ever breaking it.

But on the other hand, he recalled Maiha's words and her warning that this was all a trick of hers. Even now, it might be that Kasumi had already planned to get out of here, and her vow of never killing was all a lie. Going with Maiha's solution to lock her up was then the safer option.

_Still... e__ven if we don't trust her, i__s it truly the right move to lock her up?_ Masashi thought.

* * *

**Hello, everyone! Sorry for the month-long absence, but I've been pretty busy with a lot of things going on in my life, so I couldn't get this out earlier. Anyway, Chapter 3's begun, and this time, the new ship is meant to represent a cove taken over by pirates. I've already planned out much of this chapter, but I still have room to add in new things if I feel like it.**

**Now that you've seen Chapter 3's beginning, what do you think will happen in this chapter? Which characters do you think will die? And which characters do you hope will survive? As always, thank you for the reviews! I've enjoyed reading your guys' reactions and thoughts.**


	26. Thwarted by the Masked Player (2)

All gathered back in the main ship's dining room, having taken a good look around the third ship available to them now. They told one another what they had found, and on the whole, there was, sadly enough, nothing exciting to talk about. Even with the tools in the closet by the staff lounge near the arcade, none saw a way to use them to escape this place.

"I told you," Murphy said in his usual grumpy way. "Monokuma wouldn't be careless to give us a way out."

The only other thing of note, however, was that Sister Hikari said that she had not fully looked through the untidy room in the lower second deck. Though Masashi doubted at this point that there was something useful there, the nun nonetheless insisted on checking it out later.

"Now, then," Maiha said, "since we're done talking about that matter, let us talk about something more important, shall we?"

"Hmm? What is it?" Faye asked.

"Why, the matter of our new leadership, of course!" She raised a finger. "Now that Lady Inoshishi is sadly gone, we must find someone else to lead us, must we not?"

"Well, yeah, a leader's needed at a time like this," Masashi said. "Four of us are already gone, and I don't think we should simply do nothing."

"Whom do you think to be the best candidate, then?" Haruyuki asked.

Maiha scoffed, her arms akimbo. "Is it not obvious? It is I that suggested the very idea of leadership in the first place. Unfortunately, it was then suggested that Lady Inoshishi be the leader. I don't mean to sully her name, of course, but I believe that had I been in charge, things would have turned out _much_ better."

"You're truly that sure of yourself, aren't you?" Murphy said.

Maiha scoffed again as she adjusted one of her white gloves. "I have good reason to think myself to be the fittest for the role. You may not understand this exactly because of your lowly status, commoners, but we of high society are laden with responsibilities, whence it is clear that I ought to be chosen."

"But, you know, even if you yourself are responsible," Mari said. "You're not exactly, well… inspiring."

"'Inspiring'?" Maiha said, glaring at her. "What do you mean?"

"In this kind of situation, we need more than responsibility on your part," Mari answered. "And you don't really have much of it… You know… charm."

"'_Charm_'!" Maiha exclaimed, frown deepening. "In what way have I little charm?"

"Well, I don't know what she means exactly," Sayua said, arms crossed, "but if you ask me, you're an arrogant piece of work that wouldn't know the meaning of cooperation even if it kicked you from behind!"

Many of the others gasped.

Tanjiro grew a bit squeamish. "That's, uh, a rather _bold_ thing to say, don't you think?"

Sayua shrugged her shoulders. "You were trying to say it softly, but at a time like this, it's much better to be truthful about what we think of her."

"Such disrespect!" Maiha frowned, giving her the evil eye. "You truly have no sense at all, commoner!"

"Uh, while I think Sayua was a bit too heavy-handed with her criticism," Sister Hikari said softly, still looking a little surprised, "I admit that there is some truth in it."

"Yeah, you're pretty prideful and tend to look down upon us," Faye said.

"And even though you're pretty knowledgeable and responsible, you don't really seem to be the understanding kind," Sorao said.

"And you don't really seem keen to interact with us that much," Murphy said.

Haruyuki chuckled as he leaned against a nearby wall. "It seems that complaints about your attitude are not wanting at all. In my opinion, you are not someone whose deeds lead to harmony, and so it is no wonder that you have been rejected."

From what Masashi could tell, Haruyuki's assessment of the group's opinion was on the mark. None of the others looked keen or excited to be led by her. Though intelligent, she had only the respect that one had for another out of basic courtesy. And though of high society, she had little of the grace that was expected from it, and so she had won no hearts. Truly, she was no inspirational leader.

Silent, Maiha glared at the group for a few seconds before she scoffed. "Well… I suppose that at the moment, I have very little support among you."

_I guess even she can't fight against group opinion,_ Masashi thought. However much she might protest, she was but one woman. If most of the group wanted to do something that she did not want, unless she had good persuasion skills, then there was nothing that she could do about it.

"But answer me this, then," Maiha continued. "If it is not I that you want, then who will lead the way?"

"Hey, isn't this what a deputy's for?" Sayua said, looking bored. "Obviously, it should be him."

"Ah, well..." Sorao said, pointing at himself as all turned toward him.

"Hmm… You're certainly nowhere as bad as Maiha," Faye replied, "even if you are a little forgetful."

Sorao stroked his chin. "I... see what you're getting at… And I'd like to lead the way forth, really, but…"

"But what?!" Arashi said.

Sorao showed a smile that had a smatch of nervousness. "Well... I simply don't think that I feel able for the job."

"Wh-What?" Tanjiro said, eyes widened. "You're… declining?"

"Yeah, man. Normally, I'd take the job, but…" Sorao heaved a great sigh as he lowered his eyes, his expression growing dreary. "It's just that… I don't think I'm as able as I thought I was. I truly thought that I could stop any more deaths from happening, but then Lady Inoshishi suddenly was killed…"

"Oh… well… I understand how you feel," Sister Hikari said, hands rested on her lapel. "After a beloved one's death, one may feel that one is powerless, that one is weak, that one could have done something to stop it from happening… I don't blame you for choosing not to be our leader, Sorao. We each have our own ways to overcome death, and so I shall not be surprised if it takes even a year to recover from Futaba's death."

Sorao chuckled a small chuckle. "Ah, thanks for being so understanding, Sister Hikari. I don't deserve such kindness from you."

"Oh… I see…" Tanjiro mumbled, giving Sorao a rather bewildered look.

"But, you know, even if I don't feel like becoming the leader," Sorao added, raising a finger, "I can make a... _recommendation_."

"A recommendation?" Masashi asked. "Well, who?"

Sorao chuckled, this time sounding much merrier. "Well, isn't it obvious? It's you, man!"

"Wh-_What?_" Masashi said once Sorao pointed at him. "You surely don't mean _me_, right?"

"Oh, yes, I mean you, buddy! When I point, I make sure to know what I'm pointing at, you know," Sorao answered, smiling.

As the others glanced at him, Masashi could only glance back in bemusement. He had expected Sorao to say someone like Sister Hikari or Faye, but Sorao's choice felt utterly out of nowhere.

"But why choose me?" he asked.

"Well, for one, I feel that you understand the rest of us better," Sorao said. "Sure, you're likely not as knowledgeable as Maiha, but you have a better idea of what's going on in the group."

"Still… I'm no one special," Masashi replied, still taking in the fact that he had been nominated. "Don't you think that someone like that is better?"

The musician, however, shook his head, his answer not deterring him. "Hey, come on, man, just because you're an Ultimate in name only, it doesn't mean you're a bad fit for leadership. You make up for your ordinariness with your kindness and your wits. I mean, you've got to have wits, since you've been tremendously helpful in the class trials and give out those long dramatic explanations in the end."

"Um…" Masashi felt his cheeks reddening. "It was nothing, really. And I don't really want another opportunity to show off my wits…"

"Still, I can see why Sorao thinks you to be a good fit!" Sister Hikari smiled a light and gentle smile. "I think you care about us a lot. If we were in a crisis, I think you could find some way to make things better."

"Yeah, not a bad choice, now that you put it that way," Murphy said, nodding along as he grew more accepting of the idea.

"Well, I don't really care, but I guess he's better than that rich chick," Sayua added.

It did not take long for the others to agree with the idea that Masashi be made leader. Though astounded at first, Masashi began to see why there was a certain appeal to the idea; he did not mean to boast, of course, but he had spent time with most of the others and thus had gotten a better understanding of them, unlike Maiha, who had mostly spent time by herself.

"Ahaha… It seems that we are intent on putting you in charge, Masashi," Haruyuki said. "It's a rather interesting development, in my opinion."

"If that's what you guys want..." Masashi made up his mind. "I'll do it. I'll try my best to stop another killing from happening."

As the others showed relief at their choice of new leadership, Maiha, the ballroom dancer, looked at the group with a disapproving glare, frowning but saying nothing. It was much like the time when Futaba had been chosen, and so Masashi could only imagine her anger from being thwarted in her ambitions again.

_Ah, well… I should talk with Maiha later,_ Masashi thought. Sure, she was prideful and unpleasant to be around, but he still wanted to have smooth relations with her, and it would not be right to forsake a member of the group.

"So, uh, Masashi, now that you're in charge," Sorao said, "you need someone to help you, don't you?"

"Hmm?" Masashi looked askance at him. "I thought you were still the deputy."

Sorao raised his hands. "Oh, no, no, sorry that I didn't make it clear earlier, but I want to step down from my position. I… don't think that I can work as well now, so I need a break."

"A break?" Tanjiro said with as much skepticism as before.

"Yep... As I said earlier, I think I need some time to recover from all this." Sorao scratched the back of his head. "But, you know, Tanjiro, we haven't really talked that much. While I'm busy unwinding, we can catch up on things, don't you think?"

Tanjiro groaned, growing none too enthusiastic. "Yeah… Yeah, I suppose we can…"

"So, Masashi, do you have anyone in mind?" Faye asked.

"I'm not in any rush to choose someone as the new deputy," Masashi answered. "I'll see what things are like now and think about it afterwards."

"All right, then! We're all done now, aren't we?" Kasumi said as she walked toward a nearby door. "So let's end things off and go our separate ways—"

"Hold it right there, foul thief!" Maiha exclaimed. "Do you truly think that I've forgotten about the problem that you now pose to us?"

"Eep!" Kasumi squealed as the others' gazes were directed at her.

"Oh, yeah, there's the whole problem that's popped up because we know your name now!" Arashi said. "We never decided what to do about you!"

Maiha as well as the others turned toward Masashi, her new leader. "Commoner… No, I suppose it's not right to call you a mere commoner anymore... Masashi! I insist that as your first order of business, you lock up Kasumi Ayukawa for the remainder of our time here!"

"H-Hey, don't get carried away!" Kasumi said back. "There's no need to do such a thing!"

Masashi had thought about what ought to be done about this ever since his talks with Maiha and Kasumi in the pirate cove. It was no easy question to answer, given that the outcome of this would greatly affect how this killing game would play out. Kasumi was a potential danger, as she had a rather great motive to kill, but on the other hand, the phantom thief insisted that she would never kill, claiming that it went against her practice. She might have lied about it, though that was not the impression that he had gotten from her. Still, even if she had not lied, would it still be better to listen to Maiha?

"What do you guys think?" Masashi asked the others.

"Well, I personally think that we ought to give Kasumi a second chance," Sister Hikari said. "She lied about going to the Memory Bank, but I want to let her show that she will not misbehave anymore."

Most of the others, however, showed a great amount of reluctance and uncertainty.

"Masashi, I've got to tell you, I don't think you'll make the right move here by letting her go," Murphy began. "Kasumi's a phantom thief. Not exactly a trustworthy kind of person."

"Well, duh," Sayua said. "That thief chick's likely up to something right now."

"Y-You'd have to be pretty stupid to trust her," Hikari said as she glanced off to the side.

"Hmm… Sorry, but Maiha has a point here," Faye said.

Maiha smirked as she turned back to Masashi. "Do you see it now? Almost all of them think that it's good that she be locked up."

"So… I should lock her up, then?" he said. Admittedly, he had not often led groups before, and even then, the groups were nowhere as great as this one, nor had the groups been placed in such a situation as this. Here, the consequences of each decision were potentially deadlier than he would like.

"Um, you still seem pretty unsure, Sir Masashi," Kumi said. "Do you trust Lady Kasumi a lot?"

"Somewhat…" Masashi replied. "I talked with her earlier, and she mentioned that she'd never kill another human being. And from what I could tell, I don't think she was lying."

"That's right! I really meant it," Kasumi said, her tone growing a bit more serious. "I'd _never_ kill anyone. That's one of my principles as a phantom thief."

"Hmph! Your so-called principle is but a rank lie," Maiha retorted before she faced Masashi. "And even if you think that she does not lie, isn't it better to be safe by locking her up?"

"Well…"

It was odd; with that kind of reasoning, Masashi imagined that he would be easily persuaded to do so. After all, it seemed like the best way to uphold the peace, and the extremeness was somewhat justified by the special circumstances that the group had been put in. And it satisfied most of the group, and therefore, he ought to go with Maiha's solution.

And yet, why would he not agree to this solution?

_I don't know why… but I can't find myself going with this._

Maybe he trusted Kasumi enough to think that she did not deserve to be locked up, but in any case, he certainly would not choose Maiha's solution.

"I think we should—"

He stopped.

_Do I… truly want to do this? Even though most of the others don't like it?_ _Sure, I can do it, and they may respect my decision, but…_

The other option would likely lead to problems with the others or at least give them a strong feeling of discomfort, and that was bound to end badly. And moreover, he had a feeling that his relations with them might not go so smoothly as he hoped; after all, they had trusted that he would do the best that he could to prevent any more deaths from happening. He had earned their trust, but to suddenly make this move felt rather questionable.

And yet, he could not go with the solution to lock her up, either. Both solutions seemed pretty questionable, and the only other solution he could think of was to have someone watch over Kasumi at all time, which he deemed to be only slightly less extreme than locking her up. It would be one thing if she had tried to kill someone, but the worst that she had done was lie. The punishment seemed a bit too excessive.

In any case, it was clear that _he_ trusted Kasumi, but most of the others did not. And expecting the others to simply trust her was not realistic; she had lied about her activities during Futaba's murder and thus had nearly gotten them all killed. Even though she had later apologized for it, he could not blame the others for not being so willing to forgive her. Right now, they had no reason to trust her.

"Hey, you know, if we're gonna lock that thief up," Sayua said, "don't you think it'll be weird to stop there?"

"What? What do you mean?" Tanjiro asked.

"If you ask me, Kasumi's not the only suspicious person aboard," the cheerleader answered. "I say we ought to lock up Maiha as well."

Many of the others gasped as they looked at the ballroom dancer, who looked back at the cheerleader with widened eyes at first before she returned to her usual cool expression.

"Commoner, please do not joke at a time like this!" Maiha said. keeping her haughty tone. "We are having a serious conversation right now."

"Joke? Nah, I meant every word of what I said."

"_What?_" Maiha frowned as she crossed her arms, eyeing her with great displeasure. "On what grounds do you make your ridiculous proposition?"

"For one, as we said earlier, you don't give a damn about us as well," Sayua answered, looking not at all deterred by her. "You wouldn't really feel bad if you ever decided to get out of here."

"Ah! That's a good point!" Arashi said. "Maiha definitely wouldn't hesitate if she thought about killing us, I bet!"

"What a preposterous notion!" Maiha said, albeit with less assertiveness. "Think of me what you will, but I will _never _do what that foolish bear wants me to do."

"Ah, but isn't that along the lines of what Kasumi said?" Haruyuki pointed out, his eyes glinting. "She too insisted that she would never kill, but you would not believe her."

"Y-Yeah, that's right!" Kasumi said. "Why do _you_ get a pass when you say the same thing?"

"Hmph. I loathe the attempt to equate us both," Maiha said as she glanced away from them. "We obviously differ in how much motivation we have to get out of here. As I said earlier, Kasumi has much motive to kill us, now that we know her true name. But as for me, I have as much motivation as the rest of you. And unlike her, I've done nothing warranting your suspicions."

"Wait, now that I think about it… Maiha, weren't you hiding something from us as well?" Faye asked.

"Uh, yeah, if I recall correctly," Mari said, "I think Maiha hid the fact that she had found one of Kasumi's lockpicks."

Maiha, though noticeably a bit more rattled, simple scoffed as she adjusted one of her white gloves. "And what if I did? I kept it on my person in case there should be an emergency in which it proved useful. It had nothing to do with you, so naturally, I felt no need to tell you. And I had no idea that it belonged to that idiotic thief, for she had hidden her lockpicks from us."

"Well, you say that, but…" Sorao said. "With the lockpick, you could go into the exhibit rooms and access the weapons that had been placed there."

"Ah, I see!" Arashi said. "If Maiha ever wanted to do murder and needed a weapon, then there'd be no problem for her at all!"

Arashi then pointed at her wrathfully. "With how I see it, I bet you would've killed one of us if Abraham hadn't done it before you!"

"Wh-_WHAT?_" Maiha said, raising her hands slightly. "How dare you make such an accusation?!"

"But it certainly would explain why you hid the lockpick from us," Murphy replied, tipping the brim of his straw hat. "You wouldn't have benefited from telling us about the lockpick. To you, it was a hidden advantage in this killing game."

"Still, that does not constitute proof that I had planned to do murder!" Maiha retorted, sounding aghast.

Though very few among the others, however, looked sure that Arashi's accusation was right, very few also looked reassured by Maiha's denial thereof. Instead, most of the others shared looks full of skepticism, the same looks that they had had when asked about what ought to be done with Kasumi.

"You see? I was right to suspect her!" Sayua said proudly. "She's suspicious as hell!"

"What ridiculousness has gone through your minds!" Maiha exclaimed. "And besides, why do you look with those eyes only at me? After all, Haruyuki had a lockpick as well, did he not?"

"Ah… so it seems that I'm now under suspicion as well," the art critic said as the others' gazes were directed at him.

"Why didn't you tell us about your lockpick?" Faye asked.

"Rest assured, I had no evil intentions with it," he answered. "Ever since this killing game began, it has been my intention only to watch from afar how it plays out. I do not plan to interfere in any way."

"Yeah, right!" Sayua blurted out. "You've always struck me as weird and creepy! I bet you were up to something as well!"

Not flustered by her sudden accusation, Haruyuki let out a short chuckle. "There is no need for such suspicion. I have no interest in ending my observations of this killing game."

"Still, whether that be true or not, it's a fact that you hid the lockpick from us," Faye said, looking at him disapprovingly. "It shows that you're willing to hide important things from us."

"Then maybe we should lock Haruyuki up as well!" Arashi said, scowling. "He's nearly as dangerous as Maiha!"

Haruyuki frowned, looking at Arashi sternly for the first time. "I would rather not be put under such measures! I wish to keep my current observation, and locking me up would severely limit how much I can see."

"Yeah, well, who gives a damn about that?!" Sayua said, waving her hand dismissively.

"Now hang on, everyone!" Sister Hikari said. "Let's not be carried away here! I understand why you want to lock up Kasumi, but I think locking up Maiha and Haruyuki as well goes a bit too far!"

Sayua scoffed. "I don't see any reason to stick up for them. They're clearly suspicious as hell, and let's face it, we don't know anything about those two!"

"Yeah, no offense, Sister Hikari, but there's no telling what kind of people they truly are, you know," Sorao said.

Sister Hikari looked dumbstruck for a few seconds before she recovered. "Still... I think we should calm down and talk about this peacefully."

"Yeah, I think there's a better solution to all this," Tanjiro said meekly. "Let's not be so hasty in our decision here..."

"But it's undeniable that Maiha and Haruyuki haven't been open with us," Murphy pointed out, not looking receptive to the cry for civility. "And in a killing game, keeping important things away from us is definitely an advantage for them."

Hikari scoffed as she hid her hands in her kimono's sleeves. "Y-Yeah… You'd be pretty stupid to think they're not dangerous…"

"I don't know… Maiha's condescending, and Haruyuki's weird, but that doesn't really mean they're any dangerous and planning to kill," Faye said. "At least Kasumi went behind our backs by going to the Memory Bank. The worst those two did was hold onto two lockpicks."

"But, Miss Nirigiri, we shouldn't trust that they're not planning to get out of here!" Arashi said. "They're the least attached to us! I bet they're willing to sacrifice us to get out of here!"

Masashi could only stare as the conversation quickly devolved into an argument about whether the two ought to be locked up. Both sides kept talking to each other, repeating the same points again and again, and no progress was made in reaching a consensus. Meanwhile, Kasumi, looking utterly befuddled, stayed quiet as if fearing that speaking up made the others focus specifically on her.

"N-No… Everyone… please… stop fighting..." It was Kumi, the only one who had not gotten involved in the fiery debate. Instead, he had watched silently, his eyes welling with tears as he held his teddy bear. "We've lost too many friends… We have to get along now!"

Alas, his plea went unheard, as the others continued their argument, and seeing that he was ignored, the storyteller only wept even further. Such a sight wrenched Masashi's heart, and he too would like to see an end to this fighting. But what could he say to stop this? Letting Kasumi, and by extension Maiha and Haruyuki, was bound to displease many of the group, but locking them all in was unacceptable; even though he did not have particularly high opinions of Maiha, he still could not find it within him to lock her up. Something about it felt wrong, even though it was the safer solution.

"Hmph!" Maiha said after a short while. "Enough with this fighting. There is no need to be suspicious of me. The only thing that I have done wrong is hide a lockpick from you, but I am willing to give it up, whereby you have no reason to fear me."

"Still… you're definitely one of the more willing among us to kill," Sorao said. "If Kasumi weren't with us right now, I'd think you're the one most willing to kill, man, and I'd say you ought to be locked up."

_Wait a minute… "right now"?_

As an argument between Maiha and the others started, a thought popped up in Masashi's head: if Kasumi were not among them anymore, would they still have the same conversation as they had right now? Obviously, the answer was yes; after the proposal that Kasumi be locked up had been made, Sayua had suggested locking Maiha up as well, and it soon came to the point that Haruyuki also was under fire.

In other words, even without Kasumi, there would still be someone else to deem the most dangerous and thus the least trustworthy.

And the solution to the problem would be the same: lock that person up.

_This can't go on any longer,_ Masashi thought. _There has to be another solution to this._

After thinking about it for a few more seconds, Masashi got an idea.

"_Everyone, please be quiet!_"

All became silent upon hearing Masashi's voice booming through the dining room. Even he was surprised by the effect; he had thought that it would take him a few tries before the others should hear him. But then again, he had interrupted the debates at the class trials many times with ease, so by this point, he should be used to this.

Masashi took in a deep breath of air before continuing. "I think there's one thing that we're not thinking about in all this."

"Wh-What is it, Sir Masashi?" Kumi said, trembling.

"Mainly, it's the lack of willingness to build trust," he answered.

"What…? Building trust?" Maiha asked. "Whatever are you talking about? I thought we were talking about whether to lock Kasumi up."

"Well, I've thought about it, and I don't think that it actually solves our problem," he replied. "As I see it, the issue is that it doesn't solve the problem at hand. Even if we lock her up, we'll still mistrust her. And moreover, some of us don't trust Maiha and Haruyuki, either, and that they be locked up has even been proposed."

"So?" Sayua said.

"So it means that the problem isn't exactly the people we're concerned with!" Masashi answered. "The problem's that whenever there's someone we greatly mistrust, we're quick to lock that person up, however dangerous that person truly is. But by doing so, we're not actually improving our relations with one another."

"But what makes you think I want to do anything with those people?" the cheerleader retorted, eyeing him annoyedly. "It's much easier to put those guys behind bars, if you ask me."

"Well, yes, but…"

Masashi sighed. It certainly was the easier route, but he had decided not to tread upon it.

"I don't want us to live like this. I don't want us to simply solve our problems by putting them out of our sight. Even if it takes a lot of time… we should learn to deal with them instead of running away from them."

"I-I don't get it…" Hikari said. "Wh-What exactly do you want us to do?"

Masashi took a few seconds before answering.

"I… want us to build a bond."

"_A bond?_" Maiha repeated with the most surprised expression that had appeared on her face so far. "Are you saying that you want us to be… friends?"

"Well… yes. At the very least, we ought to be more than mere acquaintances at this point," Masashi answered. "We're all trapped here in this awful place, forced to play this killing game. If we want to overcome Monokuma somehow, then I think we all need to stick together."

"T-Together..." Kumi muttered, tearing up. "Th-That's right… I want us all… to be happy… To form a bond is what I want…"

"Wait, what's with all this 'bond' talk?" Sayua said at once, frowning. "Just because I'm trapped in the same place as you guys, it doesn't mean we all have to be buddy-buddy here!"

"Still… I think Masashi's right about this!" Sister Hikari said, smiling. "We clearly have a problem with mistrust right now. If we deepen our friendships and form strong bonds, then I believe that we'll become less willing to cut those bonds."

"So it's a way to deter us from thinking about killing…" Tanjiro said, brightening up. "Well, I think it's worth a shot, at the very least."

"But how do you plan to have us 'form a bond', Masashi?" Faye asked, looking at him skeptically. "Those are some pretty, reassuring, and hopeful words, but I'd like to hear something concrete."

"Well… this whole place is an amusement park," he answered. "Even though it's awful that we're trapped here, we may as well take advantage of it. We can spend time together by playing games, for instance."

"Oh, you mean like that one time when we played bumper cars?!" Arashi said excitedly. "I want to play that game again! I'm pretty sure I can beat Sayua!"

"Hah, well, think again, buddy!" Sayua replied, smirking. "I can beat you at any game, any time!"

"Well, if you want to prove him again, you'll have to join us," Tanjiro pointed out.

Sayua scoffed. "If it means I can show off how good I am, then count me in!"

_Oh... Well, I guess that works,_ Masashi thought, surprised to see how easy Sayua had been goaded into joining them. In any case, he was relieved to see one of the more stubborn and standoffish of the group become willing to participate; if he could convince the others, then things might go swimmingly.

"Hmm… I'm still not sure about your idea," Faye said. "But… I guess it won't hurt to give it a try."

"Yeah, I'm not fully sold on the idea, but I'll join in as well," Murphy said, looking rather keen. "And hey, at the very least, it involves playing games, so it should be fun!"

"D-Do I really have to join in…?" This time, it was Hikari, who did not look any less gloomy. "I-It all sounds pretty annoying and tiresome to play a bunch of games."

"Hey, now, I can't let that statement stand!" Murphy said. "Playing games is a good way to pass the time! Haven't you ever played some games with your friends?"

"N-No… And I don't even have any friends to begin with…" the spirit channeler answered quietly.

Murphy started, eyes widened. "What? You've never played one video game? Well, that's unbelievable! You're missing out on many wonderful masterpieces. Can't you play at least one game in the arcade?"

"W-Well…"

Hikari looked back and forth at the others for a few seconds. "I-I don't have to talk too much, do I?"

"It'd be nice if you did, but you don't have to. Lots of people like to play games without talking all that much."

"Then…" Hikari bit her lips before continuing. "I guess… one try wouldn't hurt."

Seeing that things had been taken care of for her, Masashi then turned over to Sorao. "So what do you think about my idea?"

The musician looked at the others before he let out a short merry chuckle. "Well, it seems that most of the others like the idea, man. How can I say no at this point?"

"Well, I'm glad to hear that, but…" Masashi said. "Even if you didn't know what the others thought about it, would you still say yes?"

Sorao set a finger on his chin as he thought about it. "Yeah… I know what you're going for. A bond _binds_ two people together. When one of them does the other something special, the other person naturally feels indebted and so returns the favor. It's a two-way relationship, the kind of relationship that a peaceful world runs on."

"Yeah…" Masashi smiled. "A peaceful world…"

He then turned over to Mari. "How about you? How do you feel about this idea?"

"Mmm…" Mari said nothing for a few seconds, setting a finger on her chin as she tapped her foot. "I guess something like a bond is needed at a time like this. We're not really united right now, and sooner or later, Monokuma will give us another motive. We can't do anything about that, so the best we can do is discourage ourselves from falling for it."

"But do you think it'll work?" Masashi asked. Swell as her answer was, he had noticed that she was somewhat evasive in her answer.

Mari thought for a few more seconds. "I hope it works… but if it turns out that it still doesn't work, even though we've tried as hard as we can… then it'll have been regrettable."

"Um, all right…"

Masashi thought her answer to be a rather wordy way of saying that she did not have full confidence in the idea. At the very least, however, she would participate in his bond-building suggestion, which was not too surprising; something about her gave him the impression that she did not shy away from trying new things.

"So, uh, does this mean that I'm free to go?" It was Kasumi, who looked at him with a wry smile as she twiddled her fingers. "You're not going to lock me up, right?"

"No, no one will be locked up," Masashi answered. "But that doesn't mean you should do whatever you want. You ought to be on your best behavior. That means no more pranks and no more hiding important things from us."

"Got it!" Kasumi said, flashing him a thumbs-up. "Henceforth, I'll be a good girl, I promise!"

"And I still want you to join us in our bond-building activities," Masashi added, wanting to make sure that she did not have the wrong impression. "Right now, you're not fully trusted by the others, so it's important that you really put in the effort to build a bond with them."

"Got it, got it!" Kasumi answered, nodding along.

Haruyuki chuckled as he leaned against a nearby wall. "I suppose that I ought to participate as well."

"Wow, really?" Sorao asked. "No offense, man, but from what I've seen of you, I'd think you would rather stay out of this."

The art critic clicked his tongue as he wagged a finger. "Do not misread my words. If we are to form a bond through recreational activities, I plan only to watch and provide you with my commentary. I don't plan on actually playing with you."

"But isn't the whole point to build trust among us?" Mari asked.

"Whether you trust me does not concern me," Haruyuki answered. "I care only insofar as I am allowed to roam around and behold how these events unfold."

Masashi sighed, still not understanding what the man was talking about. Ever since the killing game's beginning, Haruyuki had gone on about acting as an "observer" and having no role in these affairs other than doing what Monokuma needed him and the others to do. Was there a particular reason why he had insisted on his lack of involvement with this killing game's events? At first, Masashi was all right not to delve into it, but now that he was the leader, he had to determine the nature of Haruyuki's behavior if he wanted to keep the peace.

"Then could you at least play with us the first time around?" Masashi asked, thinking it best that they compromise for the time being. "I'd like you all to be involved so that I may hear from you what I can do better."

Haruyuki stayed silent for a few seconds before answering. "Well, I suppose that one time will not hurt. But afterwards, I shall not have to participate in these activities."

Masashi showed a little smile. "Ah, thanks for agreeing to it."

Of course, he hoped that he could persuade him to participate more; whether or not he were harmless, Masashi still thought that it was a good idea to have him interact with the group more.

_Now, then, there's one last person..._

Masashi turned around and faced Maiha, who had stood there with a quiet expression all this time. She nearly started when Masashi called her by her name.

"Hey, what do you think?" Masashi asked. "Do you think that this idea will work?"

"A-Are you seriously asking me?" Maiha said, eyeing him with skepticism.

"Uh, well… yes. I'd like to hear your opinion about this," he answered.

For a few seconds, Maiha said nothing, glancing off to the side. She showed no anger or frustration at all, her eyes instead a mix of hesitance and contemplation. Her body looked rather still, the only noticeable movement being her fingers' twirling of one of her locks. Eventually, she looked back at Masashi, uncertainty still on her face.

"Do you… truly think that forming a bond will work?" she asked, her tone lacking the usual haughtiness.

"I don't know for certain, but I think it's needed if we ever want to get out of here," Masashi answered. "We can't overcome whatever Monokuma will throw our way unless we unite."

"Is that so?" she replied. "Well…"

She paused for only a few seconds before answering. "I suppose that it sounds swell to you commoners… but I refuse to participate."

"Wh-What?" Masashi blinked a few times, dumbstruck. "Wh-What do you mean, you refuse?"

Maiha scoffed, returning to her usual prideful stance. "You commoners are so, _so_ naive if you think that a bond will do anything. What I said earlier about that foul thief still applies. She's by far the greatest threat in this killing game, and trusting her at the risk of your lives is the pinnacle of foolishness."

"H-Hey! You still don't trust me?" Kasumi asked, looking a little shocked. "I feel that whatever I do, you'll _never_ change your opinion about me!"

"That's right!" Maiha replied, frowning as she gave the thief the evil eye. "You are the Ultimate Phantom Thief… and a glaring example of what is wrong with the system."

"_The system"?_ Masashi thought, confused. _What did she mean by that?_

"And you commoners are not _worthy _to form a bond with me," Maiha continued. "It's not hard to see why. You lot dared to suspect _me_, a member of high society, of a murder plot, all because I had a lockpick reserved for emergencies. Not to mention that most of you are unintelligent or all too naive."

Many of the others gasped.

"L-Lady Maiha! H-How… How could you say that?" Kumi whimpered, appearing to weep once more.

"_How dare you call us that?!_" Arashi yelled, his fists raised. "_I'll get you back for this!"_

"Hmph. You only serve to prove my point. Your small-minded threats do not frighten me at all, foolish hothead," Maiha answered, not looking surprised at all. "If only you had let me be in charge, I would've helped you."

"Yeah, well, I'm certain you would've made a terrible leader, lady!" Sayua retorted. "In fact, I reckon that things would've gotten worse—"

"Everyone, please, that's enough!" Masashi interjected, having sensed that things would worsen if he were not to step in sooner or later. He then faced Maiha, trying to look as composed as he could. "Maiha… are you sure you don't want to join us?"

"Of course I am," she said certainly. "The other commoners repulse too much for me to want to form a 'bond' with them. Now then, please stop asking me to partake in your activity."

Masashi sighed, having grown tired from having to deal with her complaints against Kasumi and the other commoners. It was clear that she would not readily change her mind, and with her unwillingness to bond with the others, she was by far the greatest obstacle to peace right now. Dealing with her was thus unavoidable.

But much as he wanted to change her mind about it, he could see that right now, it would be a waste of time. He admittedly knew little about her, and the others' presence only served to worsen the situation in case she decided to insult them once more. Indeed, now was not the right time to deal with this. Though giving up meant that the group would not be so united as he would like, he reasoned that it was unrealistic to expect things to go fully smoothly. As the leader, he must make a few concessions if he wanted peace.

"All right, Maiha. You win," Masashi said, trying to hide his disappointment. "You don't have to participate if you don't want to."

"Wh-What?!" Kumi cried out. "S-Sir Masashi! Why are you letting Lady Maiha go?"

Maiha smiled. "He has enough reason to acknowledge my freedom not to associate with the likes of you."

Sister Hikari sighed as she lowered her head a little. "It's such a shame… I think you would find us to be better than you imagine us to be."

"Yeah, well, I bet she's _worse _than what I imagine her to be!" Sayua said, not taken aback by Masashi's response. "We don't need her, anyway! She can go ahead and act like an arrogant shrew by herself!"

"I don't think so as well," Murphy said. "As long as most of us are together, it doesn't matter if she's not included, if you ask me."

Sorao shrugged his shoulders. "One can't win them all, I guess."

"Not that we're missing much!" Sayua quickly added.

"Anyway, Masashi," Sister Hikari asked, "what do you have in mind for our first group activity?"

"Well, I haven't decided yet," Masashi said. "I'll come up with something later, though. In the meantime, you're free to do whatever you want."

"All right, then!" Kasumi clapped her hands together. "We can end things off here, right?"

Just as Masashi was about to end the meeting, however, he remembered that there was something that he had long meant to show the others. He took out from his pocket the note that Abraham had given him before his execution.

"Wait, hold on," Masashi said. "We still haven't checked this note yet."

"Oh, yeah, that note!" Arashi started. "What's on that note, Masashi?!"

"I don't know, really. I wanted to read it with you guys," he answered. "Let's see what's on it now…"

He unfolded the note and read aloud its contents:

"_The eighteen Project Shining Morrow participants from Camp 7 have been designated as the subjects of the upcoming killing game. The overseer has been deemed ready._"

What followed was a list of names of all eighteen participants of this killing game, which included Kasumi's full name as well.

"Wh-What the…?" Masashi said, utterly befuddled. "'Project Shining Morrow'? What in the world is it? "

The name did not sound Japanese, so he had no ideas as to what it meant. He looked at the others, hoping for some reason that he might find an answer from them, but not surprisingly, all looked as confused as he.

"Could Project Shining Morrow be Brightmere Research's name for this killing game?" Faye suggested.

"Hmm… But if that's the case, the wording's pretty weird," Mari said. "It says we're 'Project Shining Morrow participants', but later in the sentence, it says we've been designated as subjects of the killing game."

"It doesn't seem as if Project Shining Morrow and this killing game are the same," Maiha said. "But it raises another question: what is Project Shining Morrow?"

"M-Maybe it's some kind of science fiction project?" Kumi said, shaking as he gripped his green hood.

"It certainly sounds like a pretty weird name, so I guess it's fitting for some sci-fi project…" Faye said.

"But what does it mean?" Sorao asked. "It sounds English, and I know what 'shining' means, but I don't know whether 'shining morrow' means anything in particular. Does it, Murphy?"

Murphy nodded. "Well, 'morrow' is a rather old word meaning 'the next day'. I guess that metaphorically, 'shining morrow' is meant to mean 'bright future'."

"Sounds pretty aspirational," Sorao replied. "Still, it doesn't really help us figure out what Project Shining Morrow is."

"I've never heard of it before," Masashi said. "And since it says that we're participants… does that mean that we _agreed_ to it?"

"No way!" Sayua replied. "If I'd agreed to it, I'm pretty damn sure I'd remember!"

"Unless... we participated in it… and we simply don't… remember…" Tanjiro finished, his tone having grown drearier and drearier as he had reached the end of his sentence. "Oh… Oh no… This… This may actually be true…"

"Wh-What are you talking about?!" Arashi asked. "How in the world could we forget something like that?"

"Well, not too long ago, we had a motive in which memories of our darlings were taken away," Tanjiro pointed out. "That was possible because of the Memory Bank's technology."

"Oh!" Sister Hikari gasped. "So it's very much possible that Brightmere Research used the technology to steal our memories of the project!"

"But, uh, now that I think about it, that raises another question," Sorao pointed out, the concern on his face growing. "_When_ did we participate in the project?"

"When?" Now that he thought about it, Masashi had no idea as to what timeframe this would fit in.

"It's weird, isn't it?" Sorao continued, his tone serious. "When the killing game began, we thought that we'd been kidnapped only the night before. But it seems that we've never heard of this Project Shining Morrow until now."

"So the only possible time is between the last night we were in our homes," Maiha replied, "and the time when the killing game started."

"Th-Then Project Shining Morrow must've taken place the night before the killing game began…" Hikari said.

Sorao shook his head. "That's possible… but how can we be certain that the project was only a night long?"

Once he had raised the possibility, all the students' faces grew in their dread, as they had realized its implications.

"N-No way… Are you saying that we weren't kidnapped the night before?" Masashi said, his voice shaking.

"It is possible," Haruyuki said, among the few who remained calm. "The Memory Bank's technology does not appear to have a problem as to _how many_ memories it can take from us."

"B-But how much time passed between that night and the killing game's beginning?!" Arashi asked, sweat dripping down his brow.

Sorao shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? Maybe it was only a few days… maybe a few weeks… But for all we know, it may have been as long as a year."

"A-A _year?!_" Arashi exclaimed. "We've been gone from our homes for a year?!"

"Whoa, man! I'm only saying it's only a possibility!" Sorao replied, raising his hands in a calming motion. "All that we can say is that a longer timespan can't be ruled out, dude."

"But unless we have more information about this project," Mari said, raising a finger, "we can't really be sure, can we?"

Masashi sighed as he glanced back at the note with weary eyes. "Yeah… I guess Monokuma's not going to tell us _everything_ yet."

"I think that's everything we can glean out of that part of the sentence," Mari said. "But something else piques my interest as well. It says that we're participants from 'Camp 7'."

"Wow, that's certainly so distinctive and unique," Sayua remarked sarcastically.

"Camp 7… Yeah, no way I would know what that is. It's way too general a name," Sorao said, crossing his arms as he glanced off to the side. "It's most likely a simple designation for a facility or something, just like how one might call a bunch of rooms 'Room 1', 'Room 2', and so on."

"So what the heck is 'Camp 7', anyway?" Murphy asked. "It certainly doesn't sound a camp of the hiking variety."

"Who knows?" Sorao said. "At the very least, we can tell from the name something pretty important."

"Wh-What?" Hikari asked.

"Well, it'd be pretty weird to name only one camp Camp _7_, wouldn't it?"

It took only those words to bereave all of their calmness. Confusion spread through the crowd once more, the students looking at the musician uneasily.

"My God… there are other camps…" Murphy began. "And if the people in those camps are in the same circumstances as we are…"

Arashi gasped. "D-Don't tell me that this isn't the _only_ killing game?!"

"Now calm down, Arashi!" Faye replied quickly. "Th-That may be the case, but we simply don't have enough information! We know _nothing_ about these camps!"

"Yeah, let's all calm down here," Sorao said, relaxing his arms. "We shouldn't jump to any conclusions so hastily, man. For all we know, these camps may be something else wholly."

No one said anything back. Sorao was right; for all the new information that had been given on this note, there was still far too little to work with, and Masashi had a feeling that Monokuma would only give them more if the killing game went forth as he wanted.

Sorao sighed as he set a hand on a nearby table. "Man, no wonder Abraham didn't think this information was that important. All it's done is confuse us even more."

"Yeah, I guess our having been in a project didn't seem as concerning as his health…" Mari said.

"And besides, knowing what's going on doesn't really help us that much," Murphy said. "Even if we know what's going on, we're still trapped here on this ship, and this killing game's going to continue."

"Hmm… Good point," Masashi said. "There's little that we can do with this information right now, so I don't think we should focus much on it."

"Uh… I have one question, actually."

It was Tanjiro, who had a rather troubled expression.

"The last part of the note… mentions something about an 'overseer'," Tanjiro explained. "Who is this overseer?"

Sayua raised a hand dismissively. "What, is that all? It's obviously Monokuma, that lame-ass bear that keeps calling himself this ship's captain!"

"Yes, that makes sense," Sister Hikari added. "He's the one that enforces all these rules and forces us to participate in the class trials. That sounds like what an overseer of this killing game does."

"Oh… I guess that makes sense…" Tanjiro said as he lowered his head.

Kumi looked at him concernedly. "Um… Is there something troubling you, Sir Tanjiro?"

"Ah, not really…" the writer answered. "It's just that… I thought that it was possible that the overseer was someone else instead."

"S-Someone else?" Kumi said, worry suddenly appearing on his eyes. "Y-You mean... you think there's been a nineteenth person with us all along? And that person's stayed hidden by using invisibility magic?"

Tanjiro scratched his cheek as he answered. "That a nineteenth person might be aboard with us without our knowledge was a possibility that came into mind, yes…"

"I find it to be not worth worrying about," Haruyuki remarked. "It's possible that you're right, of course, but without evidence, I think it safe to assume that this ship has never held more than eighteen people, Monokuma excluded."

"So it's settled: the overseer in the note must be Monokuma," Sorao concluded, nodding along. "And that's everything in the note."

As Masashi put away the note, one question popped into his mind: had their disappearance been talked about on the news? Surely it must have; he could not believe that their disappearances would go unnoticed for that long. Moreover, Futaba had reassured them all that a rescue force would eventually come to save them, but not only was she now dead, but there was also no sign of any help after all this time. He had lost track of how much time had passed here, but he was sure that it had been at least a week.

Though he still hoped that outside help would come, he feared that by the time of its arrival, more killings would have been done. It was beyond clear that doing nothing and hoping that nothing bad would happen was not a wise decision.

_That's why it's more important than ever that we build a_ _bond_, Masashi thought. _For our sake, I won't let anything thwart me__._

* * *

**Hello, everyone! I'm very sorry that it's taken this long to upload this chapter; things in my life have gotten a bit messy, and other things have occupied my time as well. Rest assured, however, I plan to finish this; I've already planned out a general outline of what will happen.**

**Anyway, in this chapter, nothing too exciting has happened, but a few things have been established. Masashi's the new leader, and he decides that the group needs to form a bond of friendship and hope or something to that effect. And a bit more of the plot is revealed, which is swell.**

**By the way, one question: what do you think is the theme of this story? I've never outright told you what it is, so what do you think it is, based on what you've read so far?**


	27. Thwarted by the Masked Player (3)

Seeing nothing else to talk about, Masashi thought to end the meeting now. He was about to open his mouth, but he stopped upon seeing a certain bear suddenly pop out of nowhere.

"Hey, there, passengers!" Monokuma said. "Looks like you're enjoying yourselves quite a bit!"

"Well, I was, but then you suddenly showed up," Sayua remarked. "What do you want?"

"Hey, now, don't be so hostile toward your dear captain!" Monokuma replied, feigning shock. "I assure you, I come in peace! I mean you no harm!"

"After everything you've done, I seriously doubt that," Murphy mumbled grumpily, crossing his arms as he gave the captain a sidelong glance.

"Anyway, what have you come here for?" Faye asked.

"Not much, truly," Monokuma answered, leaning toward the side. "I simply want to report to you guys a few… cleanups."

"'Cleanups'?" Masashi said, puzzled.

"Well, I don't personally see the need for them, but I just do what I'm told. That's corporate life for you," Monokuma said as he shook his head in disappointment. "Why doesn't anyone care about my opinions? Why don't I get a say in how things are run?"

"Oh, I don't know… Maybe it's what you get for trapping us here for days," Sayua said snidely. "And without giving us any new clothes, to boot."

Monokuma pretended his weeping act for a few more seconds before going back to normal. "Ah, let me see… Remember the library connected to the merry-go-round room? Previously, you had to find the special switch whenever you wanted to go inside. But now, you don't need to do that! The doors are always open!"

"Really?" Tanjiro said surprisedly. "Well, it'll make going there much easier, at least."

"What else have you done?" Mari asked.

"Only one other thing!" Monokuma answered. "You know how the exhibit rooms in the second ship have locks, right?"

_Uh oh…_ Masashi thought, as there was only one reason why Monokuma would mention such a thing.

Monokuma chuckled as he covered his mouth with his paws. "It's been decided! Those locks have been removed!"

Gasps came from many of the others.

"Y-You mean that we have free rein to go in and out of the exhibit rooms?" Faye said incredulously.

"Well, that's how rooms whose doors don't have locks work, isn't it?" Monokuma replied. "Why do you look so surprised? You should be glad that you can take a look at the Egyptian gods whenever you want!"

"But without the locks, the exhibit rooms can't be used as an effective storage room anymore!" Masashi pointed out, getting a bit angry from seeing the glee on Monokuma's face. "Why did you decide to remove them?!"

"Sorry, what was that, buddy? Could've sworn that a flash of lightning had suddenly popped up," Monokuma said cheekily.

"I said—"

"Oh, now that I think about it work calls for me," Monokuma interrupted, "so I'll be on my way now. See ya!"

"Hey, answer the question!" Arashi bade.

But his words were pointless, as Monokuma left the room in his usual way. For a few moments, the group simply stared with utter dumbness at the empty space on which he had stood.

"Well, what now, man?" Sorao asked, facing Masashi. "You heard what Monokuma said. What shall we do now?"

"I don't think it's a good idea to have all the weapons and other stored things in the exhibit room now," Masashi began. "We should return everything to its original place. For instance, the ropes should be taken back to the storage room in this ship. As for the emergency rations, they should be put in the kitchen."

"I guess it'll be good to have them nearer to us, in case we need to use them in an emergency," Mari said.

"So who wants to move them?" Masashi asked. "I know it's a bit troublesome, but it'll take a while to put everything back to where it was."

Murphy sighed as he scratched the back of his head. "I don't really have anything better to do, so I'll help."

"I'll help as well!" Arashi said excitedly.

"Ah, that's very kind of you, Arashi," Faye said. "I ought to bake you a treat later. How does an _éclair_ sound?"

Arashi let out a gasp of amazement, eyes glinting. "Well, I don't know what that is, but if it's from you, Miss Nirigiri, I'm sure it's delicious!"

"And once that's taken care of, what shall we do then?" Mari asked.

"You guys can go do your usual routine," Masashi answered. "I still need time to think of our first bond-building event."

Once the group saw that there was nothing else to talk about, the others began to leave the room, heading their own ways.

"Hey, Masashi! Could you hold on a minute?"

It was Kasumi, who was the only other one still here.

"Hmm? What is it?" Masashi asked.

"First of all, I want to thank you for sticking up for me!" Kasumi replied, grinning. "I know I may seem dangerous because of my Ultimate talent, so I appreciate that you're willing enough to trust me."

"Ah, well… it's nothing," Masashi answered. "I thought you were earnest when you said that you would never never kill, and so I would give you another chance. Still, don't be surprised if the others aren't as willing to trust you."

"That's what the whole bond-building thing is for, right?" Kasumi said. "Once they get to know me, they'll see that I truly meant every word of my vow not to kill!"

She then lowered her smile, her expression turning mellow. "Sure, they may know my real name, but if I have to choose between killing them to keep it secret and having my real name be potentially exposed… I think I'll go with the latter."

"I hope you'll be able to live up to those words," Masashi said. "Now, if that's all, you're free to go."

"Um… actually... there _is_ one other thing I want to talk about," Kasumi replied as she adjusted her red masquerade mask. "You want to have us form a bond together. That's your strategy to stop any more killings from happening, yes?"

"Yeah, that's right…" he answered, wondering what concerned her.

"I agree with all that, but in the long run, won't we still be in the same place?" she asked. "However strong a bond we may make, we'll still be stuck here on this ship. Have you thought about any possible ways to escape?"

"Ah…" He had, of course, wished all this time that this killing game came to an end, but he had thought little about actually trying to escape this place. "Sorry… no, I haven't. I was hoping that someone would find us eventually."

"You mean the rescue forces that Futaba mentioned?" She stopped for a few seconds, skepticism entering her eyes. "Um, no offense, Masashi, but I'm actually not sure whether they'll ever come."

"Wh-What?" Masashi said, a little taken aback at her uncertainty. "But why?"

"Hey, don't get me wrong! I want help to come as well!" Kasumi replied, looking a little flustered herself. "But it's been at least a week since this whole thing began, and so far, no signs of help have shown up. I don't deny the possibility that rescue forces will come to us later, but our chances don't really look good!"

Masashi cocked his head in unbelief. "But why? Why wouldn't they be on their way?"

Kasumi scratched her cheek. "Well, I can only guess! Maybe it has something to do with this Project Shining Morrow that we apparently were involved in. Maybe something's happened to the outside world, and that's why government forces haven't come after all this time."

Masashi groaned as he lowered his eyes. "Much as I don't want to admit it… you have a point."

On the first day, Futaba had assured them that they would be rescued sooner or later, but he suspected that the others now felt less inclined to believe this, especially because its greatest proponent was dead. And now that the killing game had lasted this long, there was a chance that something strange was going on in the outside world, and that was the reason why no one would come rescue them.

Of course, that assumed that the lack of any rescuers was not done on purpose. Masashi shuddered upon thinking that the government might have had a hand in their predicament.

"If help's not coming," Masashi said, wanting to find some hope amid all this uncertainty, "what do you suggest we do, then?"

Kasumi set her hands on her hips. "Well… there _may_ be one way that we can get out of here ourselves. Follow me, and I'll show you what I mean."

She left the dining room, entering the starboard hallway. Masashi followed, feeling a rush of excitement through his body. To his surprise, however, Kasumi's destination was not so far from the dining room; she was walking to the end of the hallway, where there was a great door to which was chained an equally great golden lock. Masashi recalled having tried to open it on the first day, but he had failed, and ever since, he had ignored this part of the hallway.

"Hey, Masashi…" Kasumi said. "Do you remember that conversation we had on the second day? You know, the one in which Haruyuki guessed that I'd broken the curfew?"

Masashi gasped. "Oh, yeah, you said you were looking at this door! And since you were up at that point, you saw Atsushi come out of the merry-go-round room!"

"And I agreed to let you investigate it, after I had you give Arashi hot sauce disguised as a soda drink!" Kasumi giggled as she set her hands behind her head. "Now _that_ was a fun time, wasn't it?"

"I think you were the only one that had fun from that experience..." Masashi pointed out, feeling disappointment that Kasumi had thus tricked him. "And let me remind you that you must play no more pranks on anyone else."

"Oh, don't worry about that! I promise you that I've turned a new leaf!" Kasumi said somewhat assuringly. "Anyway… this golden lock actually has no physical key. The keyhole is only for show. Instead, it has a hidden keypad."

She pointed at a certain square indentation on the top of the great lock. She pressed down on it, after which the cover slid all the way to the right. What was uncovered was a keypad that offered English letters and numbers as input options.

"I tried to find a way to get past this lock, but I had no luck," Kasumi said. "You can try to guess what the password is if you want, but for all we know, it may be twenty characters long."

"So it's pointless to even try to guess what it is…" Masashi muttered. "Have you found any clues as to what it may be?"

To his disappointment, she shook her head. "This ship's a pretty large place, so unless we're lucky, I don't think we'll stumble upon a clue easily."

"Hmm… Kasumi, do you know what may be behind this door?" he asked.

She shook her head again. "I don't know, but I think that whatever's behind this door can prove instrumental for our escape! It seems pretty weird that Monokuma would block off access to this room out of all rooms."

"So at the very least, we can be nearly certain that there's something important behind it…" Masashi concluded. "By the way, Kasumi, have you tried unlocking the "STAFF ONLY" doors in the dining room and in the Egyptian palace's second deck?"

"Oh, those doors? Yeah, I have," Kasumi answered, looking none too cheerful. "Sorry to break it to you, but we're actually not allowed to go into those rooms. I thought about doing that last night, but Monokuma told me that the only 'STAFF ONLY' doors that we can access are the ones that are already unlocked. I'm pretty sure that's why the Memory Bank, which had such a door, was accessible to us. You can check the rules if you want to make sure."

Masashi looked at the rules listed in his Monopad, and indeed, what she had said was on there. The very sight disappointed him, as he had hoped that they might find something behind those doors.

"Hey, now that I've taken another look at the rules… there's something that's caught my eye."

Masashi pointed with excitement at the twelfth rule:

_12\. Only when the amusement park reaches its destination does the killing game end._

"Maybe we can simply wait until the ship arrives at its destination!" Masashi added. "There's a time limit to this killing game, so there don't have to be any more deaths!"

Kasumi chuckled weakly. "Um… Sorry to break it to you, Masashi, but I don't think that's right!"

"What…?" he said, befuddled. It all seemed simple: the ship was sailing toward its destination, whence Monokuma would let them go.

"Well, the problem is that it doesn't say what the destination is. Maybe we'll be sent off to some dangerous place, so we won't be out of the woods yet," Kasumi replied. "And with this 'Project Shining Morrow' that we somehow were involved in, maybe Brightmere Research has more sinister plans in mind!"

"Ah… That's right…"

Masashi groaned, finding himself unable to rebut her concern. He could definitely see Monokuma tell them that the killing game was over, only to send them to some lab facility. That technically would not be against the rules, and he doubted that Monokuma would answer any of their questions about this rule any time soon.

"So… it seems like waiting it out isn't even an option…" Masashi murmured.

"If you ask me, you'd better focus on this door," Kasumi said. "If you find a way to go into this room… I think that the chances of escape will rise greatly."

* * *

After he returned to his room and took a short shower, Masashi tried to think of a few alternative solutions to end this killing game, such as subduing Monokuma somehow. But it had been clear from the very beginning that Monokuma himself could not be destroyed, as he could simply come back in a copy of his body. Masashi looked at the rules again and saw that jumping off the ship was technically allowed, but he doubted that anyone would dare to swim all the way to civilization, especially with the stormy weather.

The only solution was to find a way to get past the locked door, but where might he find any clues on the password? Maybe he ought to organize a search later, though he doubted that it would yield any useful results. Surely it would not be _that_ easy to find a way out.

After taking a short nap, Masashi left his room and saw a certain girl walking about the garden, not at all fazed by the rain coming down from the aperture.

"Ah, hey, Masashi. What's up?" It was Mari, who wore her usual dark-blue hoodie.

"Nothing much. What are you doing right now?"

Mari touched a fringe of her long black hair. "It's raining a bit hard outside, so I can't spend time walking on the deck as usual. This garden's not so bad, is it?"

"Yeah, while we're all here, we should appreciate the sights of this weird amusement park," Masashi replied. "Mind if I walk with you?"

Mari showed a small smile. "That sounds swell."

For a long while, the two walked back and forth through the fourth deck, sometimes varying the pattern by walking in circles around certain patches of blossoms. Once, Masashi nearly tripped on a patch right by the patch on which the rain came down. Luckily, he had narrowly avoided rolling into the drenched patch and instead was troubled only by the dirt and grass on his gray jacket.

Sometime later, the two stopped beneath a tree, protected by the branches' cover. The rain poured down harder, the air growing chillier, the winds outside uselessly attacking the ship with its many blows.

"Hey, Mari…" Masashi began. "I've been wondering… why did you become a phenologist in the first place?"

"Well, if you had to guess, what would you think?" Mari asked simply.

Masashi thought for a few seconds. "Um… Maybe you decided to follow in your parents' footsteps or something."

Mari giggled softly. "Sorry, but my parents don't work in the sciences. My father's a fireman, and my mother's an elementary school teacher."

"Oh… I see," Masashi replied, a bit disappointed that his guess had been wrong.

"Ah, but don't get me wrong. My parents are pretty… outdoorsy, so I guess you could say I got my outdoorsiness from them," Mari continued, smiling a gentle smile. "Anyway, to answer your question… When I was a child, I was pretty curious about the natural world. So I went to scientific exhibitions, watched scientific shows and documentaries, read scientific books… you get the gist."

"Wow… Bet you were a very diligent scholar," Masashi said. "Were you in any science clubs, then?"

"Indeed, I was," she answered, gazing at the surrounding blossoms. "I liked to participate in as many scientific activities as I could. Scientific competitions and fairs were all fair game for me."

"Oh, did anything in particular inspire you to specialize in phenology?"

She shook her head. "Not really… My liking of phenology developed over time. If I had to guess, I'd say that it goes well with working outside." Her eyes then glinted. "It's fun to spend time outdoors while observing seasonal phenomena, don't you think?"

A little startled to see excitement entering her expression and voice, Masashi nodded.

"Anyway, as I got older, I began to go on field trips to a few scientific institutions, and I even attended a few workshops at some universities during the summer," Mari continued, her excitement subdued a little. "I even assisted a few researchers in their projects and was credited as a contributor."

"Wow, really? That's unbelievable!"

"If you can't believe it, then the papers will make you believe, Masashi," she retorted cheekily.

"Well… I guess I'll take your word for it," he said, gaping. "You're not the kind of girl to while the time away by playing games at home, are you?"

"I'm more a book girl, truly," she answered. "I can recommend you a few books if you want to learn more about phenology. Maybe then we can have more fun conversations, and we can even try to challenge each other on how much we know about the earth!"

Masashi started upon seeing Mari lean toward him, her excitement waxing.

"Th-That's your version of fun, huh…" he said. "Truthfully, I don't think I can compete with you in that field. I'm only a normal guy, but you're the Ultimate Phenologist! I don't think I can ever learn as much about it as you!"

"Nothing's stopping you from learning more, Masashi!" Mari clasped her hands together as she approached Masashi. "There are many interesting things about phenology, I assure you!"

_Wh-What the…?_ Masashi thought, startled to see her look so excited. Was this a scientist's eccentricity at work? _Sh-She really wants to talk about this…!_

Seeing what would soon befall him, he also saw that he could not escape her without looking like an thoughtless sap. She looked not at all bothered; in fact, now that he was essentially trapped, he swore that he saw her eyes glint yet again.

"To begin with, phenology plays a key role in life not only for humans but also for other beings!" Mari said, raring to go. "For instance, birds may time the hatching of their eggs to occur in seasons when certain insects appear. That way, the birds can catch them to feed their younglings…"

But she did not relent at all. For a long while, Mari talked about sundry seasonal phenomena, never growing listless. She mainly talked about how organisms of the natural world were affected by the seasons, though she occasionally talked about how the seasons affected humans. This topic had far less focus, Masashi guessed, because he was already familiar with them. In any case, he was amazed by her depth of knowledge, though that was greatly dwarfed by his astonishment of how long she could talk.

"Isn't it interesting how great a role the seasons play for all beings on Earth?" Mari said as she ended her talk.

"Yeah… It's rather interesting to hear how certain animals get ready for winter…" Masashi replied, trying to reckon how many minutes her talk had taken. Had it been ten? Had it been thirty? Or had it been a whole hour? He might even believe that it had taken a whole day, were his sense of reality weak.

Mari smiled a small smile. "I'm glad that you would listen to what I had to say. Maybe next time, I can talk to you more about phenology."

"If that's what you want, sure…"

As Mari walked away, Masashi made a note to himself that he ought to be ready for long lectures the next time that he decided to go on a walk with her. Fun as it was to be around her, he definitely felt tired from having listened to her go on for that long.

* * *

"Wh-What do you want?"

Hikari looked not at all glad when Masashi entered the pool room in the pirates' cove. From what he could tell, she was simply looking at the pool, in which no one swam right now. The only thing to greet her was her own reflection.

"Oh, I only want to check up on you," Masashi began, trying to ignore her irked expression. "You haven't really been talking much with the others, so I wonder whether there's something bothering you."

Hikari looked away as she covered her mouth with her white kimono's sleeve. "I-I see no reason to talk with th-them…"

"What don't you like about them? On the whole, I think they're good people."

Hikari stopped yet again. "I-If you think those people are g-good… y-you'd better be ready for d-disappointment."

Masashi widened his eyes, the concern on his expression growing. "What…? Why don't you think they're good people?"

"You're really naive, if you ask me…" she replied as she took in a deep breath. "Y-You may think that people care about you… but in truth, they all look out for themselves. Th-They'd gladly toss you away if it helped them somehow."

"Well, I think you may be too pessimistic—"

"_Of course you would say that!_" Hikari faced Masashi with a scowl. "Y-You don't know what my life is like… You don't know what it's like to be loved by no one."

"_No one?_" Masashi repeated incredulously. "Come on, that can't be true. Can you explain to me why you feel that way, at least?"

"You're not going to go away if I don't tell you, r-right?"

"I'd like to go away with a better understanding of your problems, at least," Masashi answered. "It's clear that there's something wrong, and if I can, I want to do something about it."

Hikari looked at him with bewilderment for a few seconds. "Well… I-I guess I'll give you credit that you don't want to stay naive… All right, I'll talk."

Masashi smiled gently, hoping that he would let her feel at ease, even if it meant having to brook her demeaning characterization of him.

"To begin with," Masashi said, "you say you're loved by no one. But you have a family, don't you?"

Hikari sighed as she lowered her head. "Oh, please… I-If family had meant anything, my own parents wouldn't have forsaken me in the woods."

"_What?_" Masashi said, wide-eyed. He was about to ask whether it was true, but he quickly reasoned that it would only worsen her opinion of him. "But why?"

Hikari set her hands together, her kimono's sleeves covering them. "It… It's my spirit channeling powers. Because of them, I-I've always been treated differently. I remember hearing from my mother how odd I was… for laughing and weeping willy-nilly. I-I saw things that the other children didn't… It was all right at first, but as I got older, the others gave me more and more wary glances."

"Ah…" Masashi understood what she had said. She must have been to interact with ghosts at a very young age, and obviously, that would make her stand out too much. "But what made your parents decide to forsake you?"

"I-It happened when I was about s-six," she answered. "I saw her… my maternal grandmother. She had died years before my birth… but I could talk with her. I knew things that only she knew. And it was then… that my parents saw that I had special powers."

"That… That is pretty conclusive evidence…" Masashi replied. "So why did they choose to leave you alone in the woods?"

"I don't really know for sure..." she said gloomily. "Th-They were frightened by my powers, so it was clear I didn't belong in their home anymore… I guess they thought leaving me in the woods was the easiest option."

"And not an orphanage?"

Hikari scoffed. "Th-They may have tried doing that, but I guess it didn't work… Not that it would've helped."

"So, uh, do you have a home now, or are you living in the woods?"

"A-A home… It's a bit of a long story, though… one I don't really want to talk about."

The more he heard of her tale, the drearier he too felt. Other than the beginning, it had nothing positive about it at all; the people that had been supposed to give her a loving home had ended up going as far as doing the crime of child abandonment. The dread and mistrust that he could sense from her tale was so tiring that he would have her end the tale at once.

_All right, this is getting way too gloomy,_ Masashi thought. _I should try to end things off her on a positive note._

"Hikari… I think it's good that you've told me all this," he said. "I definitely understand why you don't think highly of other people."

He thought to say that she ought to be more open-minded. After all, unlike her parents, the other people here were, on the whole, kind and would not mistreat her at all. At least, that was what Masashi thought of them. But given how condescending that might sound, he realized that that might tick her off instead. He decided to go at it from another angle.

"Let me ask you this, then: how do you feel after telling me all this?" he asked. "Do you think it's helped you in any way?"

"Well…"

Surprisingly, Hikari dropped her usual moody expression, which was replaced by a look of confusion. She glanced away from Masashi and eyed the ground, mumbling something. Masashi wanted to ask whether she was all right, but he figured that she would snap at him, saying that she needed time to think. Eventually, after a minute or so, she gave her answer.

"I… I guess this wasn't too bad," she said. "At least you're not saying I'm wrong for feeling this way."

Masashi smiled. "Hikari, let me assure you that if you're ever in any trouble, I'm here to help you. I won't harm you, I promise."

"Wh-Whatever…" she replied, though the usual wariness in her voice was noticeably less.

"And you won't mind if I come talk with you again, right?"

"Hmph… E-Even if I say no, you're going to do it anyway…" she said bitterly.

Masashi watched as she walked away. Though wishing that she had answered more positively, Masashi could tell one thing from her answer: she was not unwilling to spend more time with him. Maybe over time, he could get her to change her mind and become trustful of other people.

* * *

When Masashi entered the Egyptian palace's exhibit rooms, he saw Kasumi looking at one of the exhibits.

"Hey, Masashi!" she said in her usual chirpy voice. "Want to hear a tale of mine?"

"Uh, sure, go right ahead," Masashi said, seeing how keen she seemed.

"You see this, Masashi?" Kasumi pointed at an exhibit of a falcon-shaped figure. According to the nearby stand, the god was named Horus. "I stole something like this a long while ago! It was a bird-like idol figure that a famous rock musician had bought. On a snowy night, I arrived at the mansion, the musician having already received my calling card. As I approached the mansion, I heard music being played through the speakers…"

She then went on about how she managed to sneak into the room in which the idol had been stored. It sounded so unbelievable that Masashi would think that she had made it all up, were it not for the awfully great amount of detail in her tale.

"Anyway, I got the idol in the end," Kasumi finished. "As usual, after the theft was reported on the news, I sent the musician his idol back. And let me tell you, he sure wasn't happy that I had ruined his 'performance'!"

"Wow… You really enjoy what you do, don't you, Kasumi?" Masashi replied, astonished.

"Well, if one has to stick to something, it'd better be something one's either good at or enjoys a lot," she said, smiling. "And thankfully, in my case, it's both!"

"So what made you want to become one in the first place?" he asked. "It's not exactly an orthodox occupation, to put it lightly."

Kasumi giggled as she covered her mouth with her right hand. "Ah, you want to hear? Well, I guess you know my name, and it flatters me that you want to learn more about me." She then leaned toward him with a slightly stern expression, as if ready to whisper to him some great secret. "Keep in mind, though, that I'm technically wanted by the government and some particular individuals, and revealing my background details can potentially put me in greater risk. Hence, I want you to promise that you won't say anything!"

"Oh, uh… sure. Sure, I won't say anything," he answered. On one hand, he liked to follow authority and would cooperate with the government if need were, but on the other hand, he was interested in learning more about Kasumi, and she seemed harmless and friendly, her thefts set aside.

"All right, I'm holding you on your word on this!" Kasumi said. "If I catch you blabbing on me, I'll, uh… Say, what valuables are in your room back home, anyway?"

"My room? For starters, a lot of video games—"

"That's it!" She snapped her fingers. "I'll send you a calling card that says I plan to steal all your video games! And you'll get them back only after I finish playing through them!"

_Oh… that's one way to punish me, I suppose…_ Masashi thought. _And some of those games will take days to complete, so it might take a year to get them back..._

"To begin with, when I was very young, through certain circumstances, I became separated from my biological parents," Kasumi said. "I was found by a certain man… For reference's sake, let's call him the 'Thief King'."

"The 'Thief King'?" Masashi gave her a puzzled look. He was also interested in the part about her biological parents, but figured that in this tale, it was not important, and so decided to keep quiet about it.

"You see, the Thief King is actually the Ultimate Thief… but for certain reasons, he forsook his original name and lived his life using fake names thenceforth," she continued, speaking with an overly dramatic tone. "He was in the middle of a getaway heist when he found me. He took me in, and after forging a new identity… I'm legally his biological daughter. Using a few tricks, he registered his new identity on the family registry. He decided to use my last name as his fake last name."

"Wow… I guess the Thief King decided to settle down if he wanted to take care of you," Masashi replied, amazed at how much of her life seemed like something out of fiction.

"Well, not exactly. Even after adopting me, he still went on a few heists," Kasumi answered. "I helped him plan a few of them, as did his son."

"To be clear, you're actually living with an adoptive father and his biological son, even though the government thinks you're all of the same blood," Masashi said.

Kasumi nodded. "Glad to see that you want to get all the lore straightened out! Anyway, to answer your question of why I wanted to become a phantom thief… I guess my work with the Thief King made me interested in doing something involving theft. I didn't want to become a regular thief, though."

"Really? Why didn't you become a thief?" Masashi asked, and now that he thought about it, it sounded weird to ask such a question in the first place.

"Well… to be truthful, I think theft done only for personal gain is kind of dishonorable," Kasumi said. "I understand that many regular thieves do it because they're victims of circumstance, and I appreciate that the Thief King thieved to take care of me… but still, I prefer that it be not done."

"Ah, that's kind of weird coming from you… but I see what you're getting at," Masashi replied. It was funny to hear her of all people talk about how dishonorable theft was, but in a way, it was also admirable that she too had standards for it.

"In the end, I thought phantom thieving to be much more interesting," she answered, smiling softly. "As a phantom thief, I alert the owner beforehand that I plan to steal his treasure. That way, he has time to get ready and try to defend his treasure. That makes it a fair challenge between us!"

"Hmm… Once again, that's kind of weird, but I understand your logic," Masashi replied. "I guess you're the kind of person that enjoys the challenge."

"That's right!" Kasumi nodded, her eyes glinting as if he had harmonized with her. "I steal for the fun that the challenge gives, not for money or for the treasure itself! And don't you think phantom thieving is much more extraordinary, anyway?"

"Well, I admit, it _is_ pretty cool…" Masashi thought of all the phantom thieves that he had seen in fiction. He remembered a certain one that had a ninja as an assistant, and he had always wondered at how fun a life the phantom thief lived.

Kasumi clapped her hands together. "Well, if you think it's cool, then I'll tell you even more about the world of phantom thieving next time! There's always something interesting afoot!"

* * *

Sometime later, Masashi thought that it might be a good idea to have the first bond-building event be set in the arcade in the pirates' cove. From what he could tell earlier, there were sundry games offered in the arcade, so there should be enough games that the others would be interested in, whatever their preferences might be. Still, he had not checked the games out in total, so he went off to the arcade.

When he arrived, he saw that Arashi and Murphy were already playing on one of the machines, and Faye stood nearby watching them. From what he could tell, the two were a racing game called End Dream Racing Kart, which he had heard of. End Dream was a popular role-playing game franchise whose installments took in many different kinds of fantasy worlds, and generally, the games were independent of one another, so an interested player could start off with any of them. Masashi even owned some of the games, though he had never played or seen the racing spinoff.

"Aw, man!" Arashi groaned as he slammed his hands on the machine. "I can't believe I've lost _again!_"

Murphy sneered as he leaned back on his chair. "I've played the console version many times, so of course I know the game like the back of my hand."

"Ah, cheer up, Arashi," Faye said. "You've played the game a few times already, so you should have gotten the hang of it by now."

"I sure have, Miss Nirigiri!" he answered. "I'm gonna stick with Amelia! With her fire magic, she's definitely my kind of girl!"

"Hmph. Guess I'll stick with Harold," Murphy said, referring to a paladin who wanted to avenge his family after the villain had slain them.

"All right, let's begin!" Arashi said, gripping the controls excitedly.

And so the two began a session of End Dream Racing Kart, a remix of a battle theme from one of the games playing. The two were racing not against each other but also against AI-controlled drivers, each driver using a different character.

Masashi looked around the arcade more, checking the other games. A few that interested him were Combat Magique, a fighting game in which all the characters appeared to be French; Kriegsherr, a shooting game taking place in a military setting; and Macbeth's Last Stand, a platformer that was based on a tragedy written by the English playwright Shakespeare. Most of the arcade games had multiplayer options, so Masashi expected that it would be no problem for the group to play these games together.

Wondering whether there was anything going on in the staff lounge, Masashi headed for the arcade corridor and took a turn to the left. The door at the end not only took a somewhat great amount of work to open because of its weight but also creaked loudly. Upon entering the room, Masashi felt a warmth that soothed him at once.

"Huh? Oh, it's only you."

It was Sayua, who was playing on one of the arcade machines inside the staff lounge. The creak must have made her look toward him. Once she caught sight of him, she turned back to her session on Kriegsherr.

"Hey, man, what's up?"

This time, it was Sorao, who was sitting on the couch with Tanjiro, the musician's arm resting on the top of the sofa. Unlike Tanjiro, who looked keen to be elsewhere and was slouching, Sorao looked relaxed and sat lazily, his right hand holding a can of herbal tea.

"I only want to see how you guys are doing, that's all," Masashi answered. "What are you doing, anyway?"

Sorao drank of his herbal tea before answering. "We're chilling, dude. You see, I've decided that I want to hang out with my old buddy."

Tanjiro sighed, looking rather tired already. "It certainly wasn't my idea…"

"So what's exactly the story between you two, anyway?" Masashi asked. "If I have it right, you two live on the same apartment block, so you're neighbors."

"Yep. We've been neighbors since we were born, really," Sorao answered, smiling as he gave Tanjiro a sidelong glance. "When we were babies, I used to play around with Tadaomi, don't you remember?"

Tanjiro nodded reluctantly. "Yeah… You hung out with my younger twin brother a lot… and happened to leave me out at the same time. It got to the point that our mothers joked that it was you and Tadaomi that were actually twins..."

"Hah… Come on, dude, don't be so down about that. There must've been a perfectly good reason why I felt inclined to hang around with him far more than with you. What do you think it was, Masashi?"

"Huh? What do _I_ think?" Masashi said, caught off-guard as Sorao looked at him with a beseeching grin. "Well… maybe the younger twin was far more active and outgoing. No offense, Tanjiro, but I don't think you're that kind of person."

Tanjiro groaned as he lowered his head. "You're not the first person to say that."

Meanwhile, Sorao let out a merry laugh before he sipped his herbal tea again. "See, it makes sense, man. I like to have fun with others, but you… you're a stick in the mud. You're very persnickety and uptight about academics. That's why not many people want to hang out with you, don't you think, dude?"

"No… No, I suppose not," Tanjiro muttered, sounding even less happy.

Sorao chuckled again. "Why so down, Tanjiro? It's not as if you had nothing to be happy about. I mean, you're a famous writer, right? I admit, when I heard you struck gold… I was kind of envious."

"You were?" Tanjiro said, looking at him bemusedly.

"Yeah, I'd already become successful with my music, you know, so it surprised me that you'd managed to accomplish something," Sorao said. "I even thought about whether I should do the same thing, man. Writing seems kind of fun, and I think I've a talent for fiction."

Upon hearing his praise, however, Tanjiro returned to his usual dreary expression. "Oh… Of course you would say that."

"What's wrong, buddy?" Sorao asked, gazing at him puzzledly. "Sure, in the end, I decided I would stick with my music, but you should still be happy that you moved me with your accomplishment! With your high standards, you'll never be happy with your deeds."

"Y-Yeah… I guess so," Tanjiro muttered weakly.

For the next few seconds, Sorao drank his herbal tea, and he sighed out of delight as he shook his empty can. "Well, that's it for me, man. I think I ought to go do something else. It's been good chatting with you, buddy."

"See you later..." Tanjiro answered shyly, not even bothering to look him in the eye.

As soon as Sorao left the room, Tanjiro let out a great sigh of relief as he sat back against the couch, ease returning to his expression. It was as if to Tanjiro, Sorao were a weed whose sight was enough to ruin his otherwise pleasant walk through a garden.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," Tanjiro said after a while, looking at Masashi normally, though his voice still showed a hint of weakness. "I was rather embarrassing with my behavior, didn't I?"

"I wouldn't say 'embarrassing', but… you were pretty awkward," Masashi replied. "You didn't seem at all willing to want to talk with Sorao."

Tanjiro let out a small groan. "I know… But I can't help it. You may not see it, but I have good reason not to feel easy around him."

Masashi set a finger on his chin. "You mean he's truly a bit of a bully?"

"That's understating it, but I guess 'bully' will do," Tanjiro answered, his hands gripping his thighs. "You heard what he said. About our childhood, I mean…"

Masashi thought back to that part of the conversation, thinking it to have been somewhat odd. Sorao had appeared to simply reminisce about the old days, but given Tanjiro's obvious lack of comfort about the topic, it had seemed more like Sorao had wanted to draw that reaction from him.

"Wait… did Sorao pick on you a lot when you were little?" Masashi asked.

"Not exactly… it was my younger twin that did the picking on..." Tanjiro sighed as he looked down at his lap with a grave expression. "Still... he demeaned me whenever he left me out of his playtime with my younger twin brother. And it wasn't limited to that, either."

"It wasn't?" Masashi said.

The writer shook his head, his eyes lowered. "Since we were neighbors, it's not so surprising that we attended the same elementary school and the same middle school… From the very start, he was the popular kid that all loved, whereas I was the quiet one that hardly anyone wanted to hang out with."

"And I take it that he never tried to help you improve your standing?"

"Well, I asked him a few times whether I could join him and his friends on their activities…" Tanjiro answered, his voice growing quieter. "Sorao always said that he'd think about it… but in the end, he never bothered to reach out to me. He always pretended as if my asking him had never happened. I admit, I often doubted whether I remembered things right… but looking in hindsight, I'm very sure that Sorao was lying to me."

"That… is very peculiar," Masashi said, feeling more and more disturbed. "And does it still happen to you in high school?"

"Oh, no… but the reason's that Sorao and I go to different high schools," Tanjiro said. "My younger twin brother and I go to a local high school, whereas Sorao apparently goes to a music school… But since we live on the same apartment block, we still see each other from time to time."

Judging by his voice and his gloomy face, Masashi sensed that Tanjiro was not lying to him about this. If so, then it meant that Sorao was far less clean and truthful than the man would like others to believe. Even with his cool personality, Masashi could see how someone like him could very well act as a bully for Tanjiro.

"Wait… Hang on a minute, Tanjiro," Masashi said, realizing something. "You're talking about what he was like when he was a kid. But isn't it possible that Sorao's changed since then? Maybe he grew up a bit when he started high school."

Tanjiro, however, sighed as he looked up at Masashi with a slightly surer expression. "I _want_ to think that… but I assure you, he's the Sorao that I've known all this time. Trust me when I say that you shouldn't trust him at all."

_I shouldn't… trust him?_

Masashi believed that Sorao's penchant for lying was true, but the amount of foul intention involved was up to question. Still, on the whole, Sorao was a rather questionable person, and ordinarily, Masashi would think better than to associate with him. He might not reject him, but he would very much like to spend his time with more trustworthy peers.

_No… I shouldn't think like this,_ Masashi thought. _After I told everyone that we needed to learn to trust one another, it doesn't feel right to not give Sorao a chance._

Yes, Sorao had lied to Futaba and indirectly gave Abraham an opportunity to exploit Futaba's lack of knowledge about the truth. But seeing that his decision had only harmed him, Masashi felt inclined to believe that Sorao had been well-meaning with his deception. It might not have been the ideal choice, but given the circumstances, what he had done was right. And besides, Masashi had given Kasumi a chance to redeem herself after she had lied to everyone about not going to the Memory Bank. It was only fair, then, that he give Sorao a chance to show that he meant well. Tanjiro might think otherwise, but his bad experiences had clearly tainted his opinion of the man, and he needed to learn to foster a trust with Sorao.

And that kind of trust was needed for beloved peace.

_And yet… Why do I still feel this doubt?_

It must be a part of him that wanted him to think twice about his choice. But he was the leader now, and this time, he needed to set aside that doubt and believe in the others. Any doubt from him would certainly affect the others' opinions about his hopes for building a bond; people tended to follow their betters' behavior, after all.

With a deep breath, Masashi cleared his mind. The doubt was all gone, or at least, he believed that it was.

"Hey, Tanjiro! Come here, will you?"

The one who had spoken was Sayua, who beckoned her right-hand man to come to her. Had it not been for her moving of the controls for the game that she was playing, Masashi might have forgotten that she was even here. In any case, Tanjiro let out a small sigh, as if embracing himself for humiliation, and went to the cheerleader.

"What is it?" he asked meekly.

The screen of her arcade machine showed "GAME OVER", so Masashi figured that that was why she had only now decided to start a conversation.

"You know, Tanjiro, I've been listening to you guys talk the whole time," Sayua began, sitting with crossed legs. "And you want to know what I think? With your sad childhood and whatnot, it's pretty clear that that Sorao dude makes you a jittering weakling."

"Oh…" Tanjiro whimpered as he slumped his shoulders. "That… That is understandable—"

"Now, see, that's the problem!"

"Wh-What…?" The writer looked at his self-called boss confusedly. "What do you mean?"

Sayua sighed as she crossed her arms. "It won't do at all if you're like that. It's one thing to be a gigantic wimp, but it's another to let that guy bother you!"

"Huh?"

"What, you don't get it?" Sayua raised a finger, pointing at him. "Don't forget, you're a member of Team Tomi, and I can't have you be all too wimpy and whatnot when you help me! So forget about that Sorao and focus on me instead!"

_Oh… So that's why… _Masashi should have seen it coming that her motives were not so pure as her first words might suggest.

Meanwhile, Tanjiro looked at her with a less heavy expression, his voice now full of mild surprise instead of gloom. It was as if she, however self-centered she might be, had relieved him with her foreseeable response.

"I… see what you're saying," Tanjiro answered, sounding calmer now. "But, Sayua, I assure you that I'm all right. You didn't need to say all that."

"Wh-_What?_ Are you sure about that?"

"I know that I may come off that way whenever I'm done talking with Sorao…" he said. "But it's nothing that I'm not used to. After a while, I feel all right again."

Now it was Sayua's turn to look bemusedly at the other person in the conversation. For a few seconds, she said nothing, but eventually, she scoffed as she touched one part of her blond hair.

"Yeah, well... I was only checking on you… That's all," Sayua replied, sounding less aggressive. "As I said earlier, I can't have you act stupidly now, can I? Now go out there and get me something to drink, will you? That's my bidding, and _you have to do it now!_"

Tanjiro started upon hearing her usual chant. "R-Right… I'll be right back."

Like an obedient lamb, Tanjiro scuttled out of the room, Masashi and Sayua the only ones left.

"What are you looking at me for?" Sayua asked, looking askance at him.

"Ah, well, I'm only a little… surprised," Masashi answered. "I didn't expect you to try to cheer him up."

Sayua scoffed again. "What kind of girl do you take me for? You think I'd like to have Tanjiro be even more of a wimp than he already is? At least he's not a dumbass, unlike a few others here."

"Huh, really…" Masashi then thought of a certain question, and he felt daring enough to ask her. "Hey, Sayua… do you like Tanjiro?"

"_Huh?_"

The cheerleader grew flustered once more, but this time, her cheeks had a tinge of redness, and her lips quivered, as if he had said something ghastly to her. Given her clenched fists, he earnestly thought that she might even try to hurt him, and though he was confident that he could overpower her, he was sure that she would still have managed to land a few smarting hits on him.

Eventually, she gave her answer, not getting up from her chair.

"No… I don't like him," she answered softly. "I tolerate his presence, that's all."

"You 'tolerate' his presence?" Masashi said, finding a little mirth from her choice of words. It was obvious that she wished to say no more about this topic.

"Yeah, that's right!" Sayua said, her tone returning to its usual harshness. "Do you have a problem with that?"

"N-No, not at all!" he said, raising his hands defensively. "So, uh, what do you think of me? Do you tolerate me?"

"You don't get on my nerves, at least. It's pretty clear you've got some wits."

"Then how about, say, Sorao?"

Sayua then frowned. "That guy? Nah, I don't like him at all. Let me tell you, he's the kind of guy who wants everyone to pay attention to him. And when everyone's focused on him, who's going to focus on me?"

Masashi had no words to say, her reason not at all unexpected. Of course she would feel that way toward someone that might unwittingly threaten her perceived popularity.

"Still… you should try to be friendlier with him," he said, wanting to steer her toward a more positive way of thought.

She, however, looked no less steadfast in her stance. "Look, Masashi, I'm willing to give your bond-building thing a try, but that doesn't mean I have to be friends with him, does it? You're not getting me to be friends with that dumbass storyteller, either. I can try to learn to live with those people better, but I'm not going to be buddy-buddy with them, you know."

"Ah... I understand."

Her response had not shocked him by any means, but he still wished that she were a little more open-minded about this. Still, she might change her mind later; it was not so surprising that not all the others were fully open about his idea at first, but maybe after the first activity, they would be more willing to interact with those toward whom they felt less friendly. Eventually, Masashi hoped, the group would reach a lasting peace.

_And it'll be just like how things are back home,_ Masashi thought, smiling wishfully. _It'll be like what my normal life is supposed to be._

* * *

**It's time for Free Time Events! This time, it's with Mari, Hikari, and Kasumi. Mari got one a while ago, but for totally innocent reasons, I've decided to give her another one. This chapter also focuses on possibilities of escaping the killing game, Masashi's plans for the group's bond-building activities, and Tanjiro's relationships with Musical Rantaro and Cheerleader Bitch Miu.**

**Anyway, my question for you this time is: at this point, which characters do you hope will survive (besides your own if your submitted characters are still alive)?**


	28. Thwarted by the Masked Player (4)

For the rest of the day, Masashi rested, wanting a break from all the recent hectic events. When dinner came, he told the group what Kasumi had found out about the locked door in the woodland kingdom. Though most of the group seemed disappointed that they could not go into the locked room, they agreed to let him know if they ever found any potential clues to unlock it. He also told them about his plans for having the group spend the evening playing games in the arcade; it was to be held tomorrow night, since doing it tonight felt too sudden.

The next day, after the breakfast meal, Masashi walked to the lower second deck of the pirates' cove, wondering what the others were up to. As he walked through the narrow hallway, he saw Sister Hikari standing by the "STAFF ONLY" door at the other end.

"Ah, Masashi, there you are!" the nun said, stopping as he approached her. "I've been meaning to ask you for permission for something."

"Hmm? What is it?" Masashi asked.

"I've thought about cleaning the two rooms back there." Sister Hikari pointed at the hallway behind the "STAFF ONLY" door. "I don't want to focus all my time on Kumi, and I think those two rooms may have something of worth."

Come to think of it, on his first visit to those rooms, he had hardly checked out what was in them. One of the rooms appeared to be a regular storage room, and the other was so messy that he could hardly walk around. A tidying was needed if he wanted to ever make use of them.

"Sure, go ahead," Masashi said. "I'm confident that you'll do a good job sorting things out."

Sister Hikari smiled. "Thanks for giving me your leave. I thought that you would allow it, but still, I prefer to ask."

"Oh, it's all right. I trust you, so you don't need to report everything that you want to do, unless it's very important," Masashi answered, reasoning that it would be too tiresome for her to tell him her every deed. "By the way, how's Kumi doing? I hope he's doing all right after everything that's happened."

Sister Hikari sighed as she shook her head. "He's doing all right… but he told me that last night, he'd had a nightmare. Granted, it was a small one that ended quickly, but I'm afraid that his problems have not come to an end."

"Hmm… that sounds tough," Masashi replied. "Then again, I guess it's expected that he hasn't recovered yet. Seeing Haruka and Abraham be executed would definitely shock someone like him a lot… And I still remember his behavior in the Memory Bank."

At that time, as part of the motive, the group had gone to the Memory Bank to be given back their stolen memories. After the procedure had been done, Kumi had started to act weirdly, calling out to his mother and his father as if he had imagined their presence. Masashi had been so confused by the sight that he could not think about what to do. He imagined that he would be similarly unready if such a situation were to happen again. It was easy to imagine such a situation, but if it actually happened, he would forget about his plans at once.

"Oh… Yes, I was also startled to see him act like that," Sister Hikari said. "Thankfully, my idea of warmly embracing him appears to have stopped things from worsening… but it still worries me that Kumi's state of mind had grown worse from shock."

"Well, he may be around the same age as we are," Masashi replied, "but deep down, he's still a child at heart. It's natural that all this would frighten him much more than us."

"Hmm… I agree. But at the same time, it's one of his best qualities," Sister Hikari said, smiling slightly. "He has a very bright and sweet view of the world and tries to see the best in everything. And his attachment to fantasy may seem silly, but I've become sure that it's his way to cope with this whole situation."

"So you think it's a coping mechanism?" Masashi said.

Sister Hikari nodded. "There are some who have found his attachment to be irksome, but we all have different ways of coping with stress and fear. For Kumi, he's fallen back on a special part of his childhood and has turned it into something beyond inspiration for his tales. It's why he keeps going on hunts for fairies that we can't see. You've seen him do that, haven't you?"

"I sure have," Masashi answered. "He even was chasing after a fairy on our first meeting."

Sister Hikari chuckled. "I've occasionally heard from him that he goes on fairy hunting with his friends at his orphanage. I guess he must've had this habit for a long while."

"Oh, yeah, speaking of that… he was separated from his parents when he was young, wasn't he?"

"That's right… I've hardly asked him about it, since I know it's a very sensitive subject…" Sister Hikari replied. "This is only a theory of mine, but I suspect that he loved fantasy a lot when he was young… and when he was no longer with his parents, that was when he began to use it as a coping mechanism. It's his way of finding happiness at a time like this."

"Huh… That makes a whole lot of sense."

On his first meeting with the storyteller, Masashi had found him to be rather silly with his fairy hunting and his enthusiasm that he had for fantasy. Even for a writer of fantasy, his interest in it seemed somewhat abnormal, and even for his sweet, childlike nature, he came off as far younger as if he had somehow stopped growing after a certain point. But looking back at it, Masashi could see how Kumi's attachment had come about as a response to these dreadful circumstances. It was the nearest thing that Kumi could do to find peace and normality right now.

"All right, then, I'll be cleaning up the rooms," Sister Hikari said. "If there's anything else that you want me to do, feel free to ask."

"Ah, thank you, Sister Hikari, but you really should give yourself a break. You've already done so much for us."

Sister Hikari chuckled. "Don't worry. I haven't forgotten what you told me a while ago. I'll be sure to sit back and relax every now and then."

* * *

Masashi went up to the arcade, thinking that he might play one of the games there. When he entered, he saw Arashi playing sitting before one of the arcade machines.

"Hey, Masashi! Let's play a game together!" Arashi cried out as soon as he noticed his presence. The game that he wanted to play was End Dream Racing Kart, which Arashi had played with Murphy yesterday.

"Sure, I'll have a go at it," Masashi answered. He played a few racing games with Keiko back home, so he was already familiar with the experience.

He sat down at the neighboring machine, and the two began to play a few rounds of the game's multiplayer mode. To his surprise, however, playing on an arcade machine felt rather different from playing on a console, and it took him a while to get used to the controls. Meanwhile, however, Arashi played with no problem, and all three game sessions the pyrotechnician won.

"All right!" Arashi laughed merrily as he pumped his fists, the screens showing the results as slow relaxing music played. "I've won again!"

"Good for you…" Masashi said, who could not but feel disappointed at his loss. "Say, Arashi, you said a while ago that you lived with your grandparents, right?"

"Um…" Arashi said, the glee on his face waning. "That's right… but Grandpa isn't with us anymore…"

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that…" Masashi replied, realizing that he had been too direct in his approach. "If you want, we can talk about something else instead—"

"Hey, hold on a minute!"

To his surprise, Arashi looked unhappy at his attempt to change the subject, his arms crossed, his expression contemplative and unlike him at all.

"Um… Masashi, I want to let you know… ever since we talked about Grandpa last time, I've felt a little… troubled," Arashi said, his voice quivering.

"Oh… So you want me to help you with your trouble?" Masashi said, interest piqued. "Do you want to talk about him, then? Maybe it'll be good to tell me the full story behind your grandfather."

"Well, yeah, but..." Arashi sighed. "My grandpa's tale… doesn't really have a happy ending. So I want to tell you only the good parts and leave out the bad! But… that's not good for me, is it? To run away from that..."

_Huh… He's surprisingly pretty insightful,_ Masashi thought.

For all his childishness, Arashi was aware that he now faced a problem, and he very much wanted to deal with it. And yet, he still had a little doubt in his heart that bade him stop. All he needed, then, was a little push.

"If you ask me… I think you should tell me," Masashi answered, partly out of curiosity behind his past, and partly out of hope that this was the best course for him. "It may hurt a bit, but you need to face what's troubling you. Only then can you find a solution to your problem."

Arashi groaned as he rubbed his cheek, thinking for a few seconds. "Well… now that I think about it, Grandpa once said that a little learning sometimes came with a little hurting. So maybe… I shouldn't hold back anymore!"

He clapped his hands together. "All right, then! Masashi, let me talk about Grandpa! Maybe you can help me afterwards!"

"Well, if that's what you want, then I'll gladly listen," Masashi answered, glad to see that his encouragement had worked. "To begin with, you live with your grandmother, but what happened to your parents?"

Arashi scratched his cheek as he lowered his head, as if so shy as to not look him in the eye. "Uh, well… when I was a baby… my mom and dad… they… they died in a car accident. I didn't know about it until Grandma told me it years later."

"So after the crash, your grandparents adopted you, I presume."

"Yeah, that's right!" Arashi said, brightening up a little, though his face was still etched with great discomfort. "Grandma and Grandpa did the best they could to give me a happy childhood! Grandpa taught me all there was about fireworks! He made everyone happy with his work! I can still remember how at a certain festival, all the men and women gaped at the beautiful fireworks he'd set off! All was well… or least… I thought it was."

Arashi sniveled as his eyes began to water. "But… one day, Grandpa suddenly fainted and had to be taken to the hospital…"

Masashi widened his eyes, realizing what had happened next. Arashi had even said that it had no happy ending.

"And what happened?" he asked. Still, he would ask how it ended, wanting Arashi to end the tale on his own terms.

"Grandpa…" Arashi whimpered, tears falling onto his lap. "It turned out that he… had cancer. He only had a few more months to live. I… I didn't understand it when I first heard about it! I thought the doctor could cure it if only we paid him enough! But as time passed, I learned how wrong I was… how our everlasting bliss wasn't meant to be!"

Arashi wiped away his tears with his wrist. "Then it was time… On my last visit, Grandpa's condition had grown much, much worse… I could still talk with him, albeit barely. He… He told me something at that moment."

He gulped and took in a deep breath of air as if fighting against an unseen force that would rather not let the tale's ending be known. Masashi stood dumbly, waiting with bated breath to hear him speak.

"I can still remember his words clearly: 'Arashi… I want you to do me one last favor... Don't let your time go to waste. Make the heavens shine with your fireworks… light up the people's faces… and spread bliss and wonder throughout the world! Do not ever… forget this.'"

By the time he finished his sentence, Arashi's tears flowed down his cheeks like two rapid rivers, his voice shaky.

"And after I left… it was all over," he whimpered, grimacing more and more. "Grandpa couldn't make it through the night… No one was around to watch his last moments… I don't remember how I felt upon hearing the news… In fact, I don't remember much of what happened over the next few days. I remember standing before his gravestone and Grandma's weeping… but otherwise, it all felt like a blur to me, as if I were in another world."

_Aah... Another world..._

However weird the words might sound, the feeling of being in another world did not feel all too outlandish to Masashi. One might say that his grandfather had helped build Arashi a new world after he had lost his parents in a car accident. And at such a young age, Arashi had not expected his world to end. No one had wanted it to happen.

It was the awfullest feeling that Masashi could imagine.

"Eventually… I managed to come back to my senses," Arashi said, his tone utterly dreary. "I remembered Grandpa's wish… I remembered what he wanted me to do. So I worked as hard as I could to become the best pyrotechnician I could be! But…"

Arashi looked up at Masashi with watery eyes. "I can see it clearly now… it was that day! Ever since that day, I haven't been the same! All the people around me began to say I acted too extreme! I got angry way too easily! I had a bad temper, they said!"

_Ah, now it all makes sense_.

It was his grandfather's death that had made Arashi the man that he now was. He had come back to this world through his grandfather's wish, but he had come back a different man as well. He managed to continue his grandfather's legacy, but he was still trapped by the remnants of his old world, the foundation that his grandfather had built having never been fully replaced. And without a rebuilt foundation, he would continue to fare through this world unsteadily.

"Arashi… thank you for telling me all that," Masashi said. "I think it's good that you've told me all this."

"I…" Arashi said nothing for a few seconds. "I… don't really feel all that good, if truth be told."

"Ah, that's not surprising to hear. I think these things take time," Masashi replied. "Once you come back to this with a cooler head, I think you can learn to handle your grief better."

And yet, Arashi showed no smile, gazing down with a woebegone look. "Yeah… Maybe… Um, Masashi, I think I need to go. I want some time to be by myself."

"Oh… Of course."

Arashi then stood up and walked out of the arcade. Masashi did not follow after him, wanting to respect his request of being left alone, and hoped that over time, Arashi would find a way to regain his steadiness in this world.

* * *

Masashi headed back to the first ship, wanting to get something to drink. The weather had not improved at all, as it still lightly rained, clouds blanketing the heavens with their gloomy covers. Once he arrived at the kitchen, he saw Sister Hikari sitting at one of the tables.

"Ah, Masashi, good day," Sister Hikari said with her usual warm smile. "Is there anything that I can help you with?"

"Nothing, really," he answered. "I only want to chat with you some more. I thought it was interesting to hear you talk about yourself last time."

Sister Hikari chuckled as she flicked away a fringe of her long red hair. "Is that so? Well, I confess, it flatters me to hear you say that. I don't often chat about myself, and even as a nun, I'm not without a little pride. Now, is there anything in particular that you want to talk about?"

"Well, I've been wondering… how did you become the Ultimate Nun in the first place?" Masashi asked. "Nuns aren't all that common in Japan, after all."

"It certainly isn't." Sister Hikari gently set one hand over the other. "Well… you already know that I live in a small community with a church. But it wasn't my choice to join this community. It's more that it found me when I was all by myself."

Masashi widened his eyes. "You weren't with your parents?"

She shook her head. "I was found on my church's doorstep when I was but a baby. One of the good folk who raised me believed that my parents might have been forced to leave me because of poverty, and so that was what I believed." She heaved a great sigh as she leaned back against her seat. "I grew up thinking that I might never see my parents again. After all, forsaking one's child is a crime, and I imagined that they were not living happy lives.

"And yet, I would not condemn them," she continued. "After all, I didn't know the tale behind my abandonment. Theft is a sin, and yet I understand that there are some thieves that were forced to thieve. And so, in the same way, I believed that the circumstances might have forced them to forsake me."

Masashi looked at her with awe, amazed at her open-mindedness. Though not at all unwilling to deem lawbreakers to be sinners, she was at least willing to understand what had pushed them to sin. If he were forsaken by his own parents, he was not sure whether he would think bitterly of them, even if it were possible that they had had a good reason to do so.

"So… have you ever tried to find out what happened?"

"No… To be clear, I've never _gone_ out of my way to find the answer," she answered. "The answer, instead, came to me one day."

"What?!" Masashi exclaimed, wide-eyed. "What do you mean?!"

She stopped for a few seconds before speaking. "A few years ago, a certain man stopped by the church to take a break. When he met me and learned of my name, he asked me whether I'd been left on the church's doorstep on a certain date. Once I answered yes… he revealed that he was my father."

"Wow… You must've been pretty surprised to see your father drop by one day," Masashi said.

"Indeed, I was! It was almost surreal to meet a man whom I had never thought I should ever have the chance to meet," she answered. "He was as shocked as I was at this reunion. But I didn't waste the opportunity to ask him why he had left me at the church."

Masashi sat silently, waiting excitedly for the next part.

"He wasn't all that forthcoming at first… but after I pressed him a bit, he revealed why my mother wasn't with him anymore."

She sighed, looking none the happier as she recalled the tale. "My mother… died giving birth to me. He then thought that he'd somehow been responsible for it, and so he lost the confidence to take care of me… and he had cut off ties with his family, so he'd been put in a rather precarious situation."

"Ah…" Masashi said, surprised. "So… he was forced to leave you at the church, then."

"That's right. For the next few years, he'd had to do sundry things to be able to pick himself up again, and he had never expected to reunite with his own daughter," Sister Hikari continued. "It… It delighted me to see him again. So when he apologized and said that he didn't expect to be forgiven… I firmly told him that he was wrong! I gladly forgave him for his misdeeds, and he was so overjoyed that he even hugged me!"

Masashi gasped. "So… all was well that ended well?"

"At that time, yes," she said. "I was willing to start things anew with him. Before he left, he asked me whether I could visit him later. Of course, I promised that I would see him again soon! But…"

For the first time, tears began to gather in her eyes, her hands shaking.

"It seemed that God had something else in mind for me…" she mumbled. "The next morning… I woke up to the news that he had been killed from being run over by a car."

"Oh… Oh my God…"

As she wiped away a few of her tears, Masashi could feel his heart beat slower, her words still echoing in his mind. Having seen how kind and forgiving she was, he thought that there was no person more undeserving of such tragedy than she.

"Sister Hikari… I… I'm sorry that you had to go through all that," Masashi said softly. "I'm sure it must've been very difficult for you."

"Yes… For many days, I mourned my dear father. I had hardly known the man, and yet I would welcome him into my life. It was supposed to have been a new chapter. But... it seemed that that chapter's beginning was its end as well. All chances of connecting with my father… had suddenly become no more.

"I kept thinking about the few moments that I had had with him, that very time when I had last seen him," she continued. "I remembered what I last said to him: 'I'll see you later'. Such simple words of parting… and yet, I wished… that I had said 'I'll go with you'."

It was clear what she meant: she felt responsible for her father's death, even though she had played no role in it at all. Indeed, her lack of a role was proof of her guilt. Masashi could not agree with her line of thinking, but it was hard not to understand why she had reached that conclusion. If she had gone with him, her father's death might have been averted. The two might have gone not to his home but to some other place for celebration, and so they might have avoided the place of his killing.

Her world had not become less from her father's passing, because he had never had the chance to build a place in it.

That there was nothing left behind in her world had led her to think about the world of what might have been, the world of infinite possibilities. How likely that a possibility would have played out was wholly up to one's disposition. It was no wonder why one might wish to live in the world of what might have been.

"I didn't want others to feel such pain," Sister Hikari said, regaining what little composure she had lost. "And so I worked as hard as I could to be there for others… to be their hope… to work for God's glory."

"And that's how you became the Ultimate Nun..." Masashi said, to which question she answered with a nod. "That's… That's incredible. What happened to you was cruel, but I'm glad that your devotion to help others grew even more."

He could say that it was a blessing disguised as a curse, but there was no way that he would ever accept that kind of blessing if it involved a loved one's death. And though his impressions of the man were not fully positive, he could partly sympathize with his reasoning for forsaking her. It had been a rather complex situation, Masashi did not doubt, and he could not exactly condemn him, uncertain that he would not have done the same thing if he had been in his shoes.

Sister Hikari chuckled as she relaxed her shoulders. "I apologize if my little tale was too grave for our conversation. I know you expected something lighter..."

"No, no, not at all!" Masashi replied. "I appreciate that you told me all this. I think it's interesting to hear how you became the woman that you are! We're all aware of the good that people like you do, so it's all the more interesting to learn of your backgrounds."

"Really? Well… thank you, Masashi," she answered. "I'm glad to hear that my tale interested you. Hopefully, it may prove to be of some help to you in the future."

* * *

After he found a snack in the kitchen and ate it, Masashi headed down to the third deck and wondered whether there was anyone in the playroom. He headed there, and indeed, there was a certain boy prancing about.

"Ah, hello, Sir Masashi!"

Kumi rushed up to him, his book of tales sticking out of his satchel. He looked so blithe that if the silver translucent wings strapped to his back were actually real, then he would rise in the air and circle around Masashi like an excited fairy.

"Hey, Kumi, what are you up to?" he asked.

"Oh, nothing much, but I'm waiting for some pixies to come!" Kumi said, beaming. "I saw some gathering here earlier, so maybe more will come!"

Masashi was always impressed by his imagination. The storyteller would find no fairies, and yet he would still pretend otherwise, as if being a storyteller of fantasy required that he act so. It was amazing how dedicated he was to the genre.

"Ah, but you don't need to go! I was about to go on a break, actually!" Kumi continued. "So if you want, I can tell you one of my tales. I've been meaning to tell you the tale of Edwin, the peasant boy who gains the power of summoning foxes!"

Masashi chuckled. "Well, I'd like to hear that… but what I have in mind is a conversation about you."

"About me?" Kumi looked at him confusedly, cocking his head. "Um, all right! I don't really talk about myself that much, but if you think I'm interesting to talk about, then I'll talk! So, uh, is there anything in particular?"

"Well, for one, you now live in an orphanage," Masashi said, "but before that, you had a family, right?"

As soon as he asked that, however, Kumi's face became filled with worry, and he shrank back a bit.

"Um… You're not asking me what happened to my parents, are you?" Kumi asked shyly. "Even though you're a dear friend, it's still not something I want to talk about…"

Masashi raised his hands defensively. "Oh, no, no, of course not! I simply want to know about the life that you once had. I'm a bit curious about your childhood, that's all."

Admittedly, he was surprised that Kumi, though open and friendly, too had limits on what he would talk about. But it made sense; if he had been forced to be separated from his parents, then talking about it would only upset him, and Kumi would simply clam up if approached about it.

To his relief, Kumi brightened up as he sighed out of relief. "Oh, if it's that, that's all right! Feel free to ask about that!"

"Well, to begin with, what was your home like?" Masashi asked.

Kumi took a few seconds to think. "Um… it was only Mom, Dad, and I. I had no siblings, but it would've been cool if there'd been any, since I'd have had someone to play with, don't you think?"

Masashi could not say no to that, remembering the times when he would play with Keiko either in their home or in the nearby park. Feeling daring, he would sometimes challenge Keiko to a game, and the loser would do what the winner wanted. Oftener than not, Keiko would win and force him to help him with chores. In the end, he would never learn his lesson and would plan another game, hoping to outwit her, and finding the attempt itself to be fun.

"Where did you live?" he asked.

"Uh, somewhere in Tokyo. We were kind of rich… At least, that's what the others at the orphanage told me when I told them about my home."

"So you lived in a well-off neighborhood, then," Masashi said. It was kind of weird to think of Kumi as someone who had had a well-off childhood, given that his green tunic made him look more like a peasant, but then again, only someone well-off could afford to wear that elaborate outfit in this era. "Your parents loved you greatly, didn't they?"

"Oh, definitely!" Kumi beamed as he took out Sir Teddybane, his beloved teddy bear companion. "For one, Mom and Dad bought me lots of things! Toys, books, clothes, you name it! In fact, Dad bought me Sir Teddybane for my seventh birthday!"

"Wow… that sounded sweet," Masashi replied, imagining a young Kumi yelping in excitement as his father gave him a brand new teddy bear.

_Wait a minute… a young Kumi's hardly any different!_ Masashi thought. Even Kumi as he was now was far shorter than the others, looking like a child. Was it possible that he had somehow stopped growing a few years ago?

"And moreover," Kumi said, "Mom and Dad would read me a tale every night!"

"Oh, really?" Masashi said, putting up a smile. "What kind of books?"

Kumi chuckled as his cheeks reddened. "Well, they read me many kinds, but most of them were about fairies, knights, witches, and the like. Hearing about them every day made me more interested in these creatures that mankind has sadly forced into hiding!"

_That's your explanation on why we don't see fairies and the like, huh?_ Masashi thought, amazed by his insistence. Of course, Masashi was sure that it was only a part of Kumi's fantastic enthusiasm that he had fostered since his childhood. In the end, he must be aware that it was all fiction, but he kept it up because it was fun to do so.

"So did you write any tales of your own?" Masashi asked.

"Heh, I sure did!" Kumi answered. "In my free time, I would write about how Mom, Dad, and I would live in the same world as such heroes as the doughty knight Sir Barton and the white-haired witch Audrey! But I admit, I cast myself as the hero most of the time, and Mom and Dad were simply the hero's parents… Not that Mom and Dad ever minded!"

"Yeah, I think they were more than flattered to see your imagination at work," Masashi remarked. "With how much you spent on writing, it's no wonder that you should eventually become a famous writer."

Kumi chuckled again as he scratched his light-brown hair. "Aw, thank you, Sir Masashi! It gladdens me to hear you say such kind words! May the fairies' blessing be with you!"

Masashi could not but chuckle at such a saying; it might be silly and childish, but it was Kumi's way of showing greater appreciation. Even though there were no such thing as fairies, he had not the heart to make the boy give up his pretending.

Kumi then let out a sigh as he glanced downwards, and to Masashi's surprise, a smatch of wistfulness in the boy's eyes.

"All those good times… I wish I might have them again…" Kumi mumbled. "I wish I were with Mom and Dad again..."

Masashi could not brook seeing such a sad expression on his face. It looked rather weird, as if someone had set another boy's face on it and had tried to change it to match Kumi's features. But in the end, it did not at all befit the kind and blithesome storyteller, and Masashi would do something about it.

"It's all right, Kumi," Masashi replied softly. "After hearing everything about your time with your parents, I think it's natural that you miss them a lot. I'm sure you think a lot about how you want to reunite with them."

Kumi stared at him speechlessly for a few seconds, as if wanting to see whether he truly meant his words. It seemed that he had passed his test, as the storyteller then let out a small hesitant smile.

"Th-Thank you for saying that, Sir Masashi…" Kumi said, voice slightly shaky. "If truth be told… I didn't expect you to have me talk about Mom and Dad. Even though I think a lot about them… it's been a while since I talked much about my life with them. The others in the orphanage already know, of course, but…"

"Look, I get it. I'm a stranger, so of course you wouldn't be open about it," Masashi replied. "I've met people to whom family's a sensitive subject, so you're not alone there."

"But… Sir Masashi… you're no stranger to me," Kumi replied. "You… and all the others here… are my friends."

"Friends…"

Masashi chuckled, liking the way that he said the word. It had such a sweet and silly tone that he could not but find it charming and befitting the small boy. "Kumi… thanks for saying that. I appreciate that you think of us that way."

Yes, they were all friends here. Even the more unpleasant characters had some goodness in them, and Masashi could tell that Kumi, being ever so kind and gentle, wanted to grow closer with them. Sure, he had his flaws and might act childishly upon hearing something that he disliked, but perhaps over time, Kumi could learn to overcome these differences and grow up a little. And that, to Masashi, needed no magic at all.

"Ah, Sir Masashi! I think I've rested long enough!" Kumi said as he put Sir Teddybane back into his satchel. "The pixies are a-waiting, and I need to replenish my supply of pixie dust!"

"Good luck on your hunt," Masashi said.

Kumi then scampered off to another part of the playroom, and a few seconds later, he yelped, apparently having seen one. Then he ran, picking up his speed, and disappeared into the passageway linking the playroom to the hidden library.

* * *

It was about seven o'clock, the time for the group to play some games at the arcade together. Most of the group made its way to the arcade; Maiha had already made her lack of interest in the event clear. Masashi wondered whether there was any way to change her mind, but he had decided not to press her on the matter any further; he had promised to let her be, after all. Moreover, the two other players that were absent were Kumi and Sister Hikari; the former had said that he felt a bit sleepy, and so the latter had decided to spend the evening with him instead, in case something unexpected might happen to him.

The eleven participants arrived at the arcade, welcoming its warmth. The arcade machines' lights flickered now and then, and a quiet electronic tune buzzed from the speakers. It was a little different from how the arcade appeared during the day, and it reminded Masashi of this one cafe that he and Keiko had stumbled upon while walking in the downtown area.

"All right, Masashi, what now?" Sorao asked, he and the others facing their leader.

"Well, I think that we can play a few of the multiplayer games together," Masashi answered. "And as I heard from Monokuma earlier, you can earn tokens from these games. The tokens automatically go to your Monopads, and you can spend your tokens on some prizes."

He pointed at the gift shop counter at the other end of the room. The sundry prizes ranged from loudspeakers to archery equipment, and Masashi himself had his eye on one of the posters of End Dream, the role-playing franchise. He hated to admit it, but Monokuma at least had the decency of offering good prizes for spending one's time at the arcade.

"Ah, the arcade... I don't usually go to arcades, but the sight of games is always swell to see," Murphy said, sounding less grumpy than usual. "How about you, Hikari?"

Hikari shook her head profusely. "I-I hardly go outside... M-My adoptive mother forbids me to leave, a-and I'm not really interested in games, anyway..."

"Oh, I get it. You're scared that you'll lose whenever you dare challenge someone," Sayua said. "So you act like a rank wuss and stay out of it. I totally get it now!"

Hikari said nothing as she merely frowned and glanced away from the haughty cheerleader. Meanwhile, Tanjiro sighed and rolled his eyes from hearing yet another one of the cheerleader's boasts.

"Uh, Sayua, could you save your, uh, 'excitement' for the games?" Tanjiro asked politely. "I see no need for that kind of speech."

Sayua sneered. "You know what, Tanjiro? You're right. There's no need for it. After all, whoever may challenge me, I'll still win."

"Aren't you cocky!" Murphy said, looking none too happy after she had insulted Hikari. "I bet you're wrong on that, though. I can tell a blowhard when I see one."

"Thinking I don't live up to my words, are you? Let me prove you wrong, then, buddy!" Sayua then pointed at him determinedly. "In fact, I'll even give you the advantage! Choose whichever game you want!"

"Hmph. All right, then. That one." He pointed at one of the End Dream Racing Kart machines. "I've played it tons of times. How about you?"

"Oh, that? Never!" she replied. "But that'll only make your loss all the better for me, so try me!"

"Ooh, can I join?" Kasumi said, raising her hand. "Your little contest sounds pretty cool, and I'm quick at learning new things, so I'm pretty sure I'll have little trouble winning first place."

Murphy eyed her warily, snarling. "I know there's beginner's luck, but you can't be that confident in your skills unless you're trying to intimidate me like Sayua over there."

"And besides!" Arashi pointed at Kasumi. "Knowing you, I bet you'll try to do something shady like one of your pranks!"

"Yeah, I won't exactly be surprised if you try to cheat," Faye said, still mistrustful of her.

"Cheat? Oh, don't worry about that!" Kasumi said, trying to put up a reassuring smile. "It'd be dishonorable if I were to cheat like that, so I swear that I'll play truthfully!"

Though Arashi appeared not at all convinced by her claim of starting anew, in the end, he said nothing as he backed down. "E-Even so... someone ought to keep an eye on you! I bet you'll still try to distract the others somehow to gain an advantage!"

Haruyuki chuckled as he stepped forth. "There is no need to worry about that. I myself have already planned to watch over Kasumi. Under my watch, she will have no chance to cheat."

Meanwhile, Sayua snorted, looking none too fazed by the third player's entrance. "Sure, sure, whatever. In the end, two of you are gonna learn what it means to be trounced by me, Sayua Tomi! You should even deem it to be an honor!"

Sayua then headed off to the machines, Tanjiro only giving a dismayed look as he silently followed her.

"Hey, Hikari," Murphy said, beckoning to her. "Come with me, will you?"

"Wh-What? But why?" Hikari replied, looking truly confused. "Y-You're the one playing, aren't you? I-I'd only be watching."

"Even so, watching is a fun experience in itself. Tons of people watch other people play games online," Murphy replied. "And who knows? Maybe you'll like it!"

"Indeed, this race promises to be interesting," Haruyuki added as he followed Kasumi to another machine. "Let us see whether it matches my expectations on the winner."

Though Hikari looked not at all enthusiastic about it, she said nothing as she followed him as well. At least she showed some willingness to participate in tonight's event, and Masashi appreciated that Murphy was going out of his way to encourage her to participate more, even though it involved only watching for now.

Once the three players began their race, Sorao sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "Man, Kumi isn't here... I hoped that I could get the little fellow to play Kriegsherr."

"You mean that shooting game?" Masashi had played it already, and though he found it fun, there was nothing exceptional about it. It was at least serviceable with its realistic graphics and the way that it used its military setting.

"Yeah. I think playing that would help him," Sorao replied.

Faye gave him a befuddled look. "Uh, how? I don't see how playing a violent game would help him in any way. If anything, he would be busy screaming and curling up."

"Yeah!" Arashi added. "I can handle it, but Kumi? I don't think so!"

Sorao crossed. his arms as he glanced to the side. "Ah, but don't you get it? Kumi clearly has a problem with seeing scary stuff like that. You saw how he reacted after Haruka's and Abraham's executions. Now imagine how he'll react if he ever gets in an emergency and sees someone bleeding."

"So you want him to be exposed to violent images to help him get used to it?" Mari said.

Sorao nodded as he raised a finger. "Yeah, you get me. It's kind of like what that book about Brightmere Research said. You know, how augmented and virtual reality can be used to help patients suffering from certain fears."

_Oh, yeah, that's right… Tanjiro and Sayua found it in the hidden library…_ Masashi thought, recalling the contents of that book.

The more he thought about it, the more he understood what Sorao was trying to argue here. He could not deny that Kumi had a problem with handling gory imagery, and if he were ever in a situation where he found someone bleeding, he might not be able to help that person out of fright, and with his unwillingness to do anything, a needless death would happen. This did not apply only for the killing game; it could take place in any sudden emergency in the outside world.

Faye, however, did not appear convinced by his argument. "I don't know, Sorao… I get what you mean, but I doubt that you'll ever get Kumi to play it. Even without the highly violent and bloody imagery, the game itself still wouldn't appeal to him. For one, it involves him shooting at human characters, not monsters, does it?"

"Well... yeah, but..." Sorao answered.

"Also, they all come off as pretty human," Masashi said, remembering how enemy soldiers would cry out in pain rather realistically after being shot. "It's not cartoonish at all."

"But doesn't Kumi write stories in which humans kill other humans?" Sorao responded. "I don't see why he would have a problem with that."

"Well, keep in mind that it's all written, and I doubt he ever goes into detail about the violence itself," Mari said.

"And in a video game, he's far more involved in the action, since he actively controls a character's every deed and movement," Faye added. "If his character pulls a gun's trigger, _he's_ essentially pulling the trigger as well."

Sorao heaved a sigh as he shook his head. "All right, I get your point, dude… No Kriegsherr for him. If you ask me, it'd help the little fellow, but I can see why you think he won't like it at all."

"If it helps, I appreciated that you offered to help Kumi that way," Masashi said once he saw Sorao look a little glum. "But maybe it's a problem that Kumi can learn to overcome over time. He doesn't need to play a violent video game to help him with his timidness."

Sroao chuckled. "Thanks for saying that, man. You know, I may not look like it, but I try to look out for you guys. Sure, we may not know each other that well, but we're all buddies, aren't we? In the end, the main foe is Monokuma, and we've got to stick together at a time like this."

"Wow, Sorao… That's actually a pretty inspiring thing to say," Faye said, looking amazed. "I admit, you may come off as stupid at times, but I can see that at the end of the day, you mean well."

Sorao laughed merrily. "I know I make mistakes and questionable decisions at times, but in the end, I want to make _the world_ happy. That's what I tell myself whenever I feel nervous before my concert performances."

"I totally get you!" Arashi said, pumping his fists. "That's what I aim to do with my fireworks as well! The thousands of people that see them at festivals and firework shows always say how incredible they are!"

"Oh, uh, same for me," Faye added, glancing elsewhere as she fiddled with her fingers. "All the customers that buy my goods at my family's bakery come out happy, so I know that I'm making a positive difference in the world."

"That's... an interesting way of putting it," Mari remarked. "And as for me, I'm a phenologist. My research of the seasons can help us understand natural phenomena better, and our relationship with nature can then be strengthened. That's pretty good, isn't it?"

Masashi smiled upon hearing such words from them all. From what he could tell, Sorao had sounded truthful in his every word about wanting to make everyone happy. He definitely was the kind of guy that, as an upperclassman, would go out of his way to help his struggling lowerclassmen, even if it gave him less time to rest, and it boggled Masashi that Tanjiro seemed to greatly loathe the man. The writer truly ought to give him another chance, Masashi thought.

"Oh, I've got an idea!" Sorao pointed at the machine for the fighting game Combat Magique and opened up his arms. "Faye, want to give it a try? I've wanted to thank you for giving me that treat yesterday."

Faye set a finger on her chin. "Oh, that? I simply wanted to help you out, that's all. It was a simple, straightforward, onefold gesture. I don't need you to 'repay' me for it… but I guess it may be fun to give it a try."

Sorao smiled. "And you'll have the advantage. All the characters speak French in the game!"

Faye looked at him with much amazement. "Oh, wow… you actually remember that about me. Maybe you're not as forgetful as I think."

The two continued their conversation as they walked over to the Combat Magique machine, Arashi chasing after them. In the beginning of the conversation, Faye had appeared to be a little annoyed to hang out with Sorao, but now, her chirpy tone and body movements betokened her enjoyment in the conversation. It was swell to see her getting along with the man, however irksome he might be at times.

"All right... Which game do you want to play?" Masashi asked Mari, the only other person remaining.

"Hmm... How about that one? I've never played it before."

Mari pointed at the machines for Battle on Blue Earth. The premise was that a bunch of strange portals appeared out of nowhere one day, and from them came several monsters that threatened mankind, and so the heroes were sent to fight them off. The goal for both players was to last as long as they could; the winner was, of course, the one that lasted longer. The players could choose from a variety of characters, each with its own techniques and powers, and so there were many different ways of playing it. It was not a bad game, but Masashi did not find it to be that remarkable, since sooner or later, the game felt repetitive.

"All right, let's play that one."

Still, this was a chance to spend more time with Mari, whom he liked to a certain extent. Among the others here aboard, she seemed rather normal, albeit prone to excitement whenever talking about her interest in phenology. Though a little quiet, she had an agreeable disposition that made him not object to being around her.

The two walked over to the machines and began playing the game. Masashi, always preferring to start off simply, chose a warrior-type character, whose attacks were mainly defined by his sword. Meanwhile, Mari chose a magician-type character, whose techniques were a bit harder to pull off to compensate for her attacks' long range.

The graphics of the game were those that one might expect to find in a game aimed for children, what with its lack of graphic violence; every felled foe simply "disappeared", leaving nothing behind except the occasional potion or boost. It was a game that someone like Kumi might enjoy, and if he were here right now, Masashi could imagine him finding enjoyment from this, even if he were losing.

Of course, the opposite was true for him; he was doing much better than Mari, who seemed to have a little trouble with pulling off some of the combos as she looked at the screen with a fixed gaze, her foot tapping the floor. As time passed, the wider the gap between their scores grew, and Mari let out a sigh of frustration, her mouth creasing into a slight frown.

"Hey, Mari... try to lure your enemies in a group before using your fire magic," Masashi said, looking at her screen for only a moment. "That way, you'll get more points for combo kills."

"Oh, really? Let me see."

Mari then did as he had said, and indeed, once ten monsters were clustered together, she got points for pulling off a 10-kill attack, at which result she cracked a little smile, her shoulders relieved of some tension.

"Ah... well, it's worked," Mari replied. "Thank you, Masashi."

"It's no problem," he replied as he went back to focusing on his screen. "And you know, you should also try this..."

He gave her a few more tips to better her performance, and after she followed them, the gap between their scores grew smaller, though he was still in the lead. Nonetheless, he was more invested in the game, now that she posed a greater challenge. It was good that he was winning, but he wanted her also to have fun with this.

After a while, Masashi messed up one of the combos, whence he lost his concentration a little. That one moment was all it took, however, as the monsters that thronged the field mercilessly attacked him and bereft him of what little health he still had. As he had been killed, the game came to an end, and the performance and the bonuses accounted for, the scores were reckoned.

"Ah... So I lost."

Mari sighed as she shook her head, having been behind by a few hundred points, which was not exactly a small gap. Still, weighing all the factors, Masashi thought that she had done rather well, given that he had had the advantage of playing the game beforehand.

"Well, that was fun," Masashi said gladly. "I actually thought I might lose at the last second, but it seems luck was in my favor again."

"It sure fits your Ultimate Lucky Student title. As the loser... I thought it was fun as well."

She turned toward Masashi, smiling a soft smile. "I don't usually play these games, so... thanks for helping me back then. You didn't need to do that, you know."

"Oh, it was nothing," he replied. "I merely thought you needed a little help, so I told you a few tips, that's all."

"Really? Don't tell me that you tried to throw the match to help me as well."

She then leaned nearer toward him, gazing intently as if trying to determine whether he had spoken truly.

"What? No, no, of course not!" Masashi said, meaning every word. "I simply made a mistake at the last second, really."

After a few seconds, she leaned back and chuckled as she brushed off a strand of her long black hair.

"Don't worry. I believe you," she said happily. "I might've had more time to catch up to you if you hadn't made that silly mistake... but what's done is done. No need to fret over it."

Afterwards, Mari headed off to the women's restroom nearby, and Masashi decided to check up on how the others were doing. He first headed to the players at the End Dream Racing Kart machines, and it seemed that they had just finished their race.

"Aha! See? Told you that I'd beat you guys!"

Kasumi clapped her hands together and set them on the back of her head as she leaned back on her chair. Meanwhile, Murphy gaped at the results screen showing that he had made it to fifth place, and Sayua to seventh; Kasumi was second place, and the other spots were taken up by the AI players. Hikari and Tanjiro too looked amazed, looking at her for an explanation, whereas Haruyuki chuckled a soft but mirthful chuckle, as if he too were the winner.

"H-How? How did you pull off those maneuvers that easily?" Murphy said, setting a hand on his straw hat as he leaned back with a flabbergasted expression.

"Yeah, how the hell did you beat _me?!_" Sayua said, pointing at her accusingly. "No way a beginner like you could've pulled that stuff off!"

"Well, for one, I'm no beginner," Kasumi answered. "I've played this game a few times in the past, even though this version's a bit different."

"That's not what you said!" Sayua said back. "You said you were a quick learner!"

"I am!" she said. "I'm quick at learning how you guys play the game. I didn't say I had no experience with the game, did I?"

Tanjiro groaned. "So that was downright misleading wording of yours…"

"And thanks to that, I actually let my guard down around her…" Murphy replied. "By the time I realized you were beating me, it was already too late."

Haruyuki chuckled, covering his mouth with his gray scarf. "It was undoubtedly a splendid match! In a race, one cannot simply stop to think about one's next moves. No, all is constantly moving, and so the match is oftener than not decided by one's primal instincts. Indeed, Kasumi did very well, using her items at the right moment and letting you two focus on each other with her words. Had it not been for the sudden bomb thrown by the AI at the last second, she would have won first place! Such a sudden change, for a moment, made me want to throw my hands up in protest, but alas, that is how the dice fall."

"You… seem very ecstatic about it," Tanjiro said, giving him a puzzled look.

"H-He was clearly cheering her on, that's why…" Hikari mumbled, leering at them both. "A-At least Murphy beat that dumb woman..."

"Who are you calling dumb?!" Sayua said, glaring at her. "I would've gotten ahead of him if it hadn't been for the damn computer! I demand a rematch at once!"

"Looks like to you there's no such thing as being served humble pie," Murphy remarked.

Having seen enough, Masashi headed over to the Combat Magique machines, where Sorao, Faye, and Arashi were. When he arrived, Sorao and Arashi were busy playing against each other, each of them having nearly no health left.

"Come on, come on, _come on!_" Arashi said, clicking hard on the controls.

But it was no use; Sorao pulled off one last combo move that felled Arashi. Once the results screen popped up, the musician cried out in victory as he smirked at the pyrotechnician.

"Nice try, buddy, but it looks like I'm better than you at this," Sorao said cheekily. "Your attempt to wreak revenge for your precious Miss Nirigiri hasn't worked out at all. It was much easier to beat you than her, that's for sure. You're nothing more than a weakling that can't avenge his lady."

It was clear that Sorao was only playing around, finding some mirth in pouring salt over his opponent and hoping to draw an angry response from him. Then he would look cool and mature before him and would garner the respect of anyone who might be watching this.

"Gah…" Arashi groaned as he lowered his head. "Y-Yeah, well… I'm all right with that!"

"What?" Sorao looked at him, mouth slightly open. "You're not getting angry over that?"

Arashi sneered as he set his arms akimbo. "In the past, I might do such a thing… but no longer! I decided a while ago that I needed to change. And so! Even though I am a bit angry at what you've said… I'm going to be a grown-up and won't make a mess out of myself! I won't go on any childish tantrums anymore!"

Faye chuckled as she patted him on the shoulder. "Good for you, Arashi! I'm glad to see you're trying to mature. Maybe you should take a page out of his book, Sorao."

Sorao cringed at the remark. "Man, you know that's low…"

Masashi smiled upon hearing his declaration. He could remember how in his first meeting with him, Arashi had acted blithely at first before suddenly growing angry, to the point that Masashi had feared that he might try to harm him. But after Haruka's death, Arashi had had enough of his emotional problem and so had striven to overcome it after Masashi had encouraged him. Yes, it was thanks to him that Arashi was on the path of getting a hold of himself and becoming normal again.

After he talked with them some more, Masashi heaved a sigh as he took in the sight of the arcade. It was such a splendid sight to see it filled with people who found mirth in these little amusements, laughing and squealing as they played along, as if they were in no killing game at all. Through his mind rushed memories of the fun times that he had had with his friends over the years. They would all play around in the nearby playground, pretending that it were a castle that was besieged by fiends, the gang splitting up into fiends and defenders. They would go to the nearby park to take a walk and admire the blossoms while chatting about the TV show they had seen last night or the manga they had just read. And they would even go to another city every now and then, spending most of the day on exploration.

And he must not forget about Keiko, his dear younger sister. Even though she was only two years younger than he, whenever she accompanied him and his friends, she would always keep track of the time and remind them whenever they acted out of line, as if she were the older one instead. Though he would sometimes whine to her about her persnickety nature, in the end, he would follow her suggestion and do what she said. And after she had gotten the title of Ultimate Maid a year ago, his friends would joke that she had always come off as a maid to them, but to Masashi, it hardly mattered what title she had; in the end, she was his younger sister, and everything that she did was not due to her being the Ultimate Maid but due to her being Keiko. If she were to suddenly lose the title, nothing would change for him.

It might not be a life of ambition, but he had no reason to want for more. He loved being normal.

* * *

**More Free Time Events! This time, Arashi, Sister Hikari, and Kumi are featured. It's always good to learn more about our beloved characters in this crazy world of Danganronpa, isn't it? I'm somewhat fond of Kumi; his connection with fantasy is pretty fun and interesting to play around with, and I find his childish nature to be pretty endearing. And most of the group spends time by playing games. It's good to have some light-hearted moments before, well, everything becomes... less light-hearted.**

**Next time, the motive will be shown. Chapter 3 feels a bit slower than the other two, since I want to take the time to focus on more characters than usual (gee, what could my reason be?). Anyway, feel free to guess on what you think will happen!**


	29. Thwarted by the Masked Player (5)

The arcade game night lasted for about an hour and a half, and after all headed their own separate ways, Masashi felt tired enough to go back to his room. But when it was ten o'clock, the usual nighttime announcement did not play.

"Good evening, everyone!" Monokuma said, wearing his usual smart white captain's outfit. "I know it's pretty late, but I have something special for you, and let me tell you, it's _huge!_ I'll meet you at the dining room! See ya!"

Masashi grimaced at such news, for there was only one thing that Monokuma would playfully refer to.

"He's got another motive for us…"

He had, of course, expected Monokuma to tempt them into murder sooner or later, but still, the very announcement filled him with worry and dread at what awaited him. And even worse, he could not ready himself beforehand; he had no idea as to what Monokuma would show off this time. It could be something like memory theft, and he did not doubt that Brightmere Research might have more technology for like purposes. Or it could go with another threat, as they already had by kidnapping their loved ones somehow. It was such a shame that the night would end like this, given all the fun and mirth that the group had experienced in the arcade, but it could not be helped.

Before he left, however, he opened up his drawer and took out his motive video, its only contents. He skipped over much of the video, only playing the part where Keiko appeared.

_Oh… Keiko…_ he thought as he took in the image of her plain face and her sweet chirpy voice, fearing that Monokuma might try to do something with his memories again. Even if this were a pitiful defense against it, Masashi still thought it good to be reminded of her face and her voice.

Afterwards, he put the video away in the drawer, and once ready, he left the room and saw that Kasumi and Haruyuki had left their rooms.

"Morning—I mean, evening!" Kasumi said, showing a small smile as she scratched the back of her head. "Sorry, I didn't expect us to see one another so quickly already! Looks like we've got another problem to deal with, huh?"

"That puts it lightly," Haruyuki answered, raising a finger calmly. "It will be interesting to see how the motive will affect us. I, of course, will not be swayed by lowly temptations, so you need not to fear me."

"What do you think about me, then?" Kasumi asked.

Haruyuki chuckled, showing a small smile. "It is my hope that you will not fall for it... but let us see how things play out, shall we?"

The three then made their way to the dining room, and Faye, Arashi, Sorao, Murphy, and Hikari were already there, standing in dread as they awaited their host. More importantly, there was a cart that carried something covered by a white sheet, a sign on the cart saying "DO NOT TOUCH". Judging by the size, Masashi imagined that it might be some kind of device, but there were many other things of the same size, so all he could do was guess.

"Hey, Arashi, are you all right?" Faye asked. "You look a bit pale."

Arashi nodded profusely. "Don't worry, I'm all right! I mean… I've been feeling a bit angry lately… and seeing that cart only makes me more upset… but I won't let Monokuma have his way!"

He then pumped his fists purposefully. "What use is it to get angry when it doesn't help anyone?!"

"Wow, you sure have come a long way from hitting Monokuma on the very first day," Sorao remarked, smirking. "Man, it feels as if that had been yesterday… and if today were that day, then Lady Inoshishi and the three others would still be alive..."

"We've already seen two people make the mistake of taking Monokuma's bait," Murphy added, sitting down at a nearby seat. "Hopefully, there won't be a third."

Hikari shuddered as she hid her hands in her kimono's sleeves, leering at the others. "I-I wish… Someone's bound to be stupid enough to do it, though… A-And we're still no closer to getting out of here."

Not long after, Tanjiro, Sayua, Mari, Kumi, and Sister Hikari came in. As Masashi had expected, the storyteller walked nervously, his face wan, his hand grasping Sister Hikari's black gown as if he were about to explore an unknown land for the first time. Meanwhile, Mari showed no signs of fright or dread at all, as if she were simply about to go to bed.

"I-I don't want any of us to die…!" Kumi whimpered. "I don't want any more bad things to happen!"

Sister Hikari patted his head gently. "There, there… Everything will be all right. I have hope that we shall weather through whatever temptations Monokuma may show us."

Sayua scoffed. "That bear can do whatever the hell he wants. I'm not gonna fall for it any time soon."

"Let's hope you're a woman of your word..." Tanjiro mumbled.

Last but not least, Maiha came into the room, looking unbothered as well and dressed in her usual smart black dress. Upon her entry, many of the others glanced at her, their eyes lacking in friendliness, to which response, she deepened her frown, her eyes chiding. Oddly enough, she had come from the port hallway instead of the starboard hallway, through which one coming from the lower decks must go.

"Why must you look at me so?" she asked. "Are you perhaps already ready to suspect me to be a future killer?"

"Well, I wasn't going to say that, but since you've already made the suggestion..." Sayua said snidely.

Maiha scoffed. "Yours is but a foolish thought. This may be beyond your limited imagination, but I've absolutely no desire to make my escape through murderous ends."

"You know, you could cut it out with the antagonism…" Faye pointed out. "You're not exactly making any friends here with that attitude of yours."

Masashi sighed, having already expected Maiha to act so, but he had not the disdain that many of the others had with her, nor was he willing to suspect her already. Antagonistic as she was, Maiha had never struck him to be a woman who would easily fall to temptation. He wondered what would possibly get her to break whatever moral standards held her back.

Afterwards, an ever so irksome laugh was heard through the room, heralding Monokuma's arrival. The others stepped back a bit once Monokuma showed up.

"Evening, passengers!" Monokuma piped, standing in front of the mysterious cart. "The weather's still rough outside, but I've heard that it'll get better! It'll be a perfect day to go fishing for some tasty tuna, don't you think?"

"Who cares about that?!" Sayua said in a shrill voice. "Just show us what we've come here for!"

"Yeah! Don't waste any more of our time!" Arashi said, his voice strained as he was trying to hold back his anger.

"Sheesh, youth nowadays! So distracted by your fancy gadgets and whatever that you can't take the time to relax and wait a bit…" Monokuma grumbled, crossing his arms. "Especially when what I've got for you is a real treat this time!"

Masashi raised his brow. "Wh-What are you talking about?"

Monookuma cackled as he dropped his mopey act. "I'm glad you asked! I've been thinking… our world is pretty unfair, isn't it? Many don't get the jobs they want… many don't ever find success in romance… many can't manage to eat anything other than the same old instant noodles… you get the point. And so!" He raised his paws. "I've decided to offer you guys a way to get ahead!"

He grabbed the cloth and pulled it off, revealing its contents at last.

_Oh… Oh no…_ Masashi thought as he gaped at the contents.

The cart held several stacks of bills that were all neatly gathered together, looking like a model of an office building. All the others gaped at such a sight, as if it shone a light that showed them the way through a dark room.

"Ta-_daaaaaaa_!" Monokuma said. "It's money! Good old-fashioned money! Don't you think this is a wonderful gift? Twenty billion yen goes to the first person who gets away with killing!"

"_Twenty billion yen?!_" the others exclaimed, this time looking much more bewildered by the news.

"Th-That's… That's way too much money to even imagine!" Masashi said, feeling a bit dizzy about even having such cash.

Murphy scowled as he touched his straw hat. "I don't know how much that is back home, but I can tell it's no small number…"

"How horrible… putting a price on our lives!" Faye exclaimed, looking a little more upset than usual.

"Y-Yeah! Human life has no price!" Kasumi added as she touched her red masquerade mask. "There's no way I'd ever kill to make myself wealthy!"

Kumi quivered before the sight. "I-If I had that money, maybe I could use it to support the other orphans…"

"No, Kumi!" Sister Hikari said, aghast at his growing desire. "However good your intentions may be, you mustn't fall for the charm of money!"

"Alas, it's not so surprising to see that such an offer has been made, is it?" Haruyuki said, among the calmer ones in the group. "In our modern age, money is a common medium that we as a society have agreed upon to use for everyday transactions and agreements. Therefore, the more money one has, the more means one has to solve one's problems… or so we think, anyway."

"It certainly helps one get ahead..." Tanjiro added.

Monokuma chortled. "Precisely! If I had lots of money, I could pay off all the debts I took to open my clothing brand, or pay some girls to accompany me for the night, and all that jazz. Doesn't that sound like paradise?"

"Gah…! It's actually pretty tempting!" Arashi said, scowling. "I… I don't know what to do! Should I go for it, or not?!"

"Of course not!" Faye said, trying to sound encouraging. "Trust me, it's not worth it! Even if you get away with it, think about what society will think—"

"_Who gives a hoot about society?!_" Monokuma piped, rearing his paws angrily. "If I were you, I wouldn't care at all if people gave me dirty glances! They might think badly of me, but in the end, I'd have so much money that their opinions wouldn't matter to me at all. I mean, to me, they already don't, since society is full of anti-bear prejudice, but you get what I mean, don't you?"

"I-I..." Hikari mumbled, twiddling her fingers. "I-I'd never take that money... Th-There's no good in money gained through murder."

"Puhuhuhuhu! You may think that for now, but I advise that you take your time to think about all the possibilities in life that this money opens up! I'm sure a few of you have some problems that a little money can fix!"

Monokuma then faced away from them. "Now then... I bid you good night! May the charms of money rain upon you in your thoughts!"

And with that, the captain disappeared, leaving them alone with the money. For a while, no one said anything, the money asserting great dominance over minds. Eventually, someone spoke up.

"Well, I suppose it is clear what is to be done."

It was Maiha, who, Masashi had just noticed, had said nothing at all after Monokuma's revelation. She crossed her arms, her face tranquil and showing no signs of being spurred.

"H-huh? What are you talking about, Lady Maiha?" Kumi asked, trembling as he held up his teddy bear and covered the lower half of his face therewith.

"Is it not at all clear?" Maiha smiled a snide smile. "As you know, I am a member of high society. I am financially secure and thus have no problems that I have no means to solve. But aside from the late Lady Inoshishi, you are far more tempted by this occasion's motive. Clearly, it is far more reasonable to be suspicious of some of you."

"All right, so you're rich, and we're poor… Still, that doesn't make us monsters. We have standards, too," Murphy said, frowning grumpily.

"Yeah, I don't live in a particularly well-off home," Tanjiro said, his expression anxious, "but it doesn't mean I'll ever kill for cash."

Maiha shook her head, however. "What naivety you show! You may say that, but can you say the same for your peers? Can you truly believe that they have not already plotted to kill for something that can dramatically change their lives for the better?"

Such words, to Masashi's horror, were enough to make the others glance at one another with chary expressions, a seed of doubt sown.

"W-Well… I-I'm definitely sure that a few of us are thinking about it." It was Hikari, who looked at the others while glancing from the side. "For example… that Sayua woman's likely up to something already."

"What the hell are you saying?!" Sayua replied, giving her a nasty leer. "Why the hell do you think I'm planning to kill?"

"Y-You're a very superficial woman…" Hikari answered, not at all appearing frightened. "I-I bet you're easily wooed by material possessions."

Haruyuki chuckled. "I've had similar thoughts as well. You've never struck me as a spendthrift."

"Oh, fuck you!" Sayua slammed a nearby table with her hand. "I like my shopping and whatnot, but even I know better than to do it with money earned through killing! Besides, I've got plenty of money back home, so I don't have any financial problems."

"Why, is that true?" Maiha said, her surprise half-feigned this time. "If you're not lying, then I'm astounded, as your money has not made you any less repugnant in your speech and your attitude."

"If you ask me, the ones not to be trusted are the ones with actual money problems!" Arashi said. "They're the ones to watch out for!"

"Arashi, please don't say such a thing!" Sister Hikari said, raising her hands in protest. "Delving into our financial backgrounds will do us no good! It'll only serve to make us suspicious of one another!"

"Yeah, I totally agree with you there," Sorao added. "Thinking about it is what Monokuma wants—"

"Don't be silly," Maiha interjected. "We ought to see which of us benefit most from the motive. Then we can take proper precautions to prevent any murders from happening. That's the _reasonable_ thing to do. Do you not agree, Masashi?"

It was then that he had realized what Maiha was about to propose.

"You're going to suggest that I lock certain people up, aren't you?"

All the others dropped their chatter as they gazed at the two, awaiting with some dread and excitement at this conversation's outcome.

"Do you think me to be a fool? I can see that you'll never become comfortable with the idea of locking up your peers," she replied. "Thus, I suggest a more moderate solution. You should instead keep the most liable ones under constant watch by their peers. They will still have their freedom, of course, but it'll ensure that they may not do anything suspicious."

Her tone was sharp and showed no surprise, her small but ever so telling smile unwavering.

"Maiha, don't you think you're acting a little too harsh here?" Faye asked, giving her a somewhat stern look as she tried to add more softness in her tone as compensation. "I understand why you think some of us to be shady and liable to kill, but even your new solution seems a bit too extreme here."

"Yeah, keeping people under constant surveillance isn't the answer," Masashi said. "It doesn't truly help rid us of our mistrust."

"And you insist on your silly exercises, then?" Maiha said with visible disgust. "Do you truly think that your so-called bond will overcome your peers' weakness for money?"

"Well… yeah."

Maiha threw up her hands in exasperation. "What foolish optimism! How can you trust your commoner peers to keep their word about not doing any bloodshed? Keep in mind that they don't necessarily have the same values as you with regard to killing. For all you know, some of them are simply feigning disgust at the idea."

Masashi took a few seconds to respond. "I… I simply think it's best to trust in the others. I don't want them to mistrust one another, and they can't do that if I can't trust them at all. As a leader, I have to act as a model."

Upon hearing his answer, Maiha deepened her frown and clicked her tongue as she crossed her arms, silently chiding him with her countenance.

"So… that's your plan, I see. I must say… I'm disappointed in you," Maiha said bitterly. "It's clear from your contributions in the class trials that you are not unintelligent, and so I thought that you would have open discourse. But to be refused so… it truly pains me to see you act like that."

"I'm sorry, Maiha, but I don't think your solution will work at all," he replied. "I want to continue our attempts to foster a bond. That's the best way to convince the others not to fall for Monokuma's trick."

Maiha shrugged her shoulders. "What a shame that things have ended up like this… Very well, then. I won't bother with my attempts anymore. That said..."

She raised a finger. "Before we head to bed, there's one more thing that I want to show you all. I discovered something rather… interesting tonight. While you were wastefully whiling your time away in the arcade, I decided to walk around. And what a discovery I made in the Memory Bank!"

_What? The… Memory Bank?_

Masashi had hardly gone there after the memory restoration; the machines had no more use, as the memories had already been given back or deleted, in Futaba's and Abraham's case. But he thought that the room served no more purpose, and so what was it that Maiha had discovered? Had Monokuma put something there? Could it be something that could help them escape this place?

"Really? What is it?" Faye asked.

"Unfortunately, my discovery could not be taken out of the room," Maiha continued, "and as I'd like to show you what I found, I ask that we head over to the Memory Bank at once." She chuckled, wagging a finger. "I guarantee you that it'll pique your interest, at the very least."

The others murmured in surprise, wondering aloud what she might be referring to. They insisted that Maiha tell them more details, but she refused, asking that they hold their questions until they saw the spectacle in the flesh.

"All right, then, let's go check it out," Masashi said, thinking it best that they see what it was at once.

Masashi led the way to the site of the discovery. Tonight's winds blew against the gang with all their might and main, as if wanting to stop them from satisfying their curiosity with knowledge deemed dangerous. Nonetheless, curiosity proved to be a greater force, and the group decided not to stop.

The Memory Bank still had its plain appearance, the light-blue floors and the white walls spotless. An eerie feeling entered Masashi's mind as he glanced at the spot where Futaba's corpse had formerly lain; she had left no sign, as if she had never been killed there in the first place, but his memory assured him otherwise. The sixteen pods were still there, and Masashi recognized his by its pixel-styled portrait of his face.

"Maiha… what was it that you found?" Masashi asked, looking at her carefully. He saw nothing about the room, and so he was clueless as to what her discovery had even been.

"It's very simple, actually," she began, her expression and her voice oddly calm. "I discovered a certain… deception."

"'Deception'?" Masashi looked askance at her.

"Yes. I was deceived in this very place, and I had been kept oblivious of that fact until tonight."

"I'm sorry, but I still don't get what you're trying to say."

A finger set on her chin, Maiha lowering her eyes slightly. "Is that so? I'm surprised, Masashi. You should know what I'm referring to. After all, the deception is yours."

For a short while, none said a word, wondering whether they had somehow misheard her. Masashi himself could hardly utter a word, as he could not remember ever trying to trick her, nor could he remember any possible cause for pulling a trick. And yet, seeing no uncertainty on her face, Maiha appeared to remember the occasion.

"Wh-What are you talking about?" Masashi asked. "The deception is mine...? I don't understand."

"Yeah, stop speaking in riddles, will you?" Sayua added.

Maiha sighed as she adjusted her white ballroom gloves. "Ah, Masashi, it seems that you've forgotten… how disappointing. Do you truly not remember our encounter here a few nights ago?"

It was those words that a certain memory from that very night rushed into his mind.

* * *

_At long last, Masashi would soon discover what he had been made to forget of his lost darling. He now stood before his pod in the Memory Bank, his fingers itching to type in the password. He had not expected himself to be in this situation, but it was all thanks to luck that he would see what he had lost._

* * *

_Alarmed, Masashi turned toward the door, only to freeze upon seeing the unbidden visitor._

_"Wh-Wh-What… What are you doing here?" Masashi asked._

_"I ought to ask you the same question, commoner!" Maiha answered, eyeing him with surprise._

* * *

Shock rushed through his veins as the memory of that fateful night played again and again, calmness waning in his disposition. He had utterly forgotten about that encounter, as Futaba's murder and other events had dominated his mind. But it seemed that she had a much better memory, a sneer now appearing on her face, as if mocking his lesser memory.

_Wait a minute… the deception she mentioned… It wouldn't make any sense to call our meeting a deception, which means… Ah! But how?!_

Masashi trembled, feeling his heart beat more and more quickly. Before he should say anything, however, Maiha faced the crowd, a hand raised.

"Do you recall the day when Monokuma stole our memories of our darlings?" Maiha said. "The next night, after nighttime began, I went out on a walk, since I could not sleep, and when I came down to this deck, I saw a boat on the other side! Curious, I entered this room, and whom should I encounter but Masashi!"

Her answer drew a few gasps from the audience.

"Masashi… is it true you came here one night, and you didn't tell us about it?" Murphy said, his frown waxing in his grumpiness.

Masashi winced as he tried to come up with a good answer. Seeing the uncertain expressions of the group, he now understood what she was now up to. She was done trying to convince him to follow her suggestion through argument, and so she now aimed for his character instead, wishing to show that he was unfit for leadership.

"I… was here," he answered. "I came here, and I happened to meet Maiha when she came in."

"What, really?" Kasumi asked. "Well, that's kind of weird… but it's nothing major, if you ask me! Seems like you were simply taking a walk, even if this is a pretty weird place to visit."

"Indeed. After all, Maiha also came here that night," Haruyuki added. "In my opinion, she warrants as much suspicion as he."

Maiha scoffed as she looked at him disapprovingly. "He claimed that he had simply strolled here… but if his misdeed had simply been coming here late at night, then I'd not have brought this issue up."

"_What?_ What the hell are you suggesting?" Sayua asked. "Are you saying that he was up to some fishy business?"

"I do not know his intentions… but I know what he was doing," she replied, sneering. "Recall that as part of the motive, Monokuma took away the memories of our darlings. He stowed them in these very pods."

"Oh!" Kasumi said, nearly starting. "That's right! We could access our pods only if we knew our darlings' names! It was part of the trick that Abraham used to frame me!"

"Wait a minute… since you're bringing _that_ up," Murphy said, looking more and more bewildered, "are you saying... you saw Masashi use his pod?"

"I didn't _see_ him use his pod, exactly… but I know for sure he did." Maiha pointed at Masashi's pod. "As you know, our pods record the history of their use. It was that very function that Abraham exploited as part of his scheme."

_Ah!_ Masashi thought, his chest slightly smarting as if a pin had pierced through it.

"And even though the pods do not contain our memories anymore," Haruyuki added, "the machines themselves seem to still work, so the History section is accessible."

"So if Masashi used his pod that night, then it should be on his History section!" Arashi concluded before he turned toward Masashi with a firm expression. "Masashi! You have your memories back, so you should know the password to your pod! What is it?!"

"There's no need for his answer," Maiha said, smiling a confident smile. "I already know what his History section says, and so of course I know the password. It's his younger sister's name, 'Keiko Kousaki'."

"_WHAT?!_" Masashi exclaimed, staring at her with utter shock and confusion. He had concluded that Maiha had somehow guessed what he had been up to, but never had he ever imagined Maiha uttering Keiko's name.

Maiha pointed at Murphy. "You there! Go into the pod and check the History section. You will see that I'm telling the truth about Masashi's lie."

The farmer nodded and rushed over to the keyboard that was a part of the pod. After he entered the pod, all stood still and looked at the pod with bated breath. Masashi himself tried as hard as he could to maintain his composure, images of disaster dominating his mind. About half a minute, the pod opened up, Murphy coming out with a grim expression.

"It's all true," he answered gravely. "The History section says it was used on the second night from 10:34 PM to 12:25 AM. It was also used on Day 7 at 9:45 PM."

"Day 7 is today, of course, and it is I that used it that time," Maiha answered. "How else would I have found out that Masashi had lied to me?"

The audience gasped as they looked at Masashi with disapproving looks.

"Masashi… You lied to us," Sorao began, a bit of anger in his eyes. "You had access to your memories and went behind our backs to look at them!"

"Y-Yeah… Wh-What do you have to say about that?" Hikari asked, giving him the evil eye as she scowled.

"Masashi, please explain yourself!" Sister Hikari said beseechingly. "Is there a reason why you didn't tell us about this?"

"Sir Masashi... why?" Kumi whimpered, his voice shaky, his eyes full of unease. "Wh-Why did you hide this from us?"

Though he could not ignore their growing confusion and desire for an explanation, Masashi could answer none of their inquiries, as he too was confused on how things had unfolded like this. Before he could answer their questions, however, he needed to know one thing.

"H-How…?" he said, looking at Maiha, feeling as if his energy were being sucked out of his body. "How do you know Keiko's name? I've never told you—"

"You're truly more forgetful than I thought!" Maiha said, looking truly surprised. "Have you forgotten the conversation that we had when we explored the pirates' cove?"

* * *

_"Ugh... What is this place, anyway?" Masashi asked as he rubbed his head._

_"I assume that it is a storage room," Maiha said. "The ones who put these things here were obviously thoughtless. This room is an utter pigsty."_

_"Well, I can't say that I care much for how things are organized," Sister Hikari said. "I would clean it up, but I suppose it would take a long while… and there are other things that I would rather do."_

_"Yeah, that I understand," Masashi said. "Maybe if my younger sister were here, it would be no problem to tidy this place up."_

_"Your younger sister?" Sister Hikari said. "Ah, is she good at cleaning?"_

_Masashi chuckled. "Oh, she's more than that! She's the Ultimate Maid!"_

_"Really?" Maiha said, eyes widened. "What is her name?"_

_"I don't know whether you've heard of her, but her name's Keiko," Masashi answered. "She's working at some rich man's mansion. At least, she's supposed to be…"_

_"Ah… is that so?" Maiha said, who grew quieter as she set her hands together._

* * *

"No… No way…!" he groaned as he bitterly remembered the innocent conversation's memory. Never would he have thought that Maiha would remember her name and use it against him.

"After you left for your silly affair in the arcade, I recalled our encounter here at the Memory Bank," Maiha continued, sneering a little as she lowered her eyes. "I began to wonder whether you had actually been truthful about your reason for coming here. And as you had also told me your younger sister's name, I came here to see whether I had been right all along. It's clear now that your trustworthiness as a leader is rather questionable, to say the least!"

"Well, Masashi?" Sorao asked, a fist clenched. "What have you got to say for yourself?"

Masashi said nothing at first as his last doubt was put to rest at all. Maiha had been lucky that it was Keiko's name that served as the password, and the worst part of all was that Masashi could have seen this coming. Maiha was definitely cunning; after the first motive had been given, if it had not been for Atsushi, she would have made the group turn against Futaba. But this time, there was no one to help him. Only he knew why he had done his deed.

"I… I admit it," he began. "I came here that night to see the memories of my younger sister, and I lied to Maiha about it."

The others gasped once more, now that it had come from the horse's mouth. Despite their horrified expressions, Masashi forced himself to continue.

"I'm sorry, everyone…" he said, feeling as if it took great efforts to even utter his words. "But after my memories had been stolen, I didn't even know that I had a younger sister! For a whole day, I didn't know that there was someone very dear and irreplaceable to me!"

He sighed as he lowered his eyes, trying to suppress his tears. "That's why when I learned about her… I got really worked up. I couldn't believe that I'd lived out a day of my life without being aware that I had a younger sister! It was so unbelievable… and I wanted answers as to what my life truly was! That's all, I swear!"

Once he stopped, he took in the audience's bewildered gazes, hoping that they would at least show their understanding of his reasoning, but expecting to be condemned by a few. None said a word, looking at one another anxiously to see which would speak first and thus show whether he was to be forgiven or condemned. Though they did not appear to outright condemn him, it was clear that he had lost a great deal of trust from them, however innocent his intentions had been.

As Masashi thought to make another apology, however, someone from the audience spoke up.

"Hey, Masashi… I have one question for you."

The one who had said it with a clear and cool voice was Sorao, who appeared a little concerned as he moved nearer to him.

"What is it?" Masashi asked, wondering what he would ask him. He could not tell whether Sorao was on his side or was leaning toward supporting him, but he wanted to think that Sorao would back him up.

"You said that you had 'learned' that you had a younger sister," Sorao said. "How exactly did you find that out?"

Masashi froze, being reminded of his other terrible secret.

_No… I… I can't answer that!_

His deception over the discovery of his lost darling's identity was awful, but at least somewhat understandable, but there was no way that he could let the others find out about his motive video, the very thing that had led him to such discovery. It was far more egregious, even though he had meant no harm when he had decided to hide it from the others.

_I'm sorry, everyone…_ Masashi thought as he grew tense. _But I have to lie to you one more time!_

"I wrote my younger sister's name down before Monokuma took away our memories," Masashi said, trying to sound as collected as he could. "I put the note away somewhere and found it the next night—"

"You lie."

To Masashi's shock, Sorao had answered him thus, looking at him with an increasingly displeased expression. All, even Maiha, looked at the musician with bemused gazes.

"What… What are you talking about?" Masashi replied at once. "What makes you think I'm lying?"

"Come on, Masashi… Your body language and your blatant attempt to sound convincing gave it away," Sorao replied, opening up his arms earnestly. "You're hiding the true cause of how you came to remember your younger sister again, and you don't want us to find out, do you?"

Masashi suppressed a gasp as he wondered whether Sorao had somehow found out about the motive video, but he figured that Sorao, being close to Futaba at the time, would have confronted him about it much earlier. And he had never taken the video out ever since he had sneaked it into his room. Sorao, then, was simply guessing, but it was a guess that was right on the mark.

_N-No..._ he thought. _This can't be happening...!_

"I'm disappointed in you!" Sorao pointed at Masashi purposefully. "You say that you're sorry for lying to us, but I've just caught you lying to us again!"

"A-Aah…!" Masashi said with a strained voice. "I… I…"

"If you're not lying to us," Sorao said, "then let's search your room, shall we? We'll see for ourselves whether you're hiding anything else from us!"

Arashi clapped his hands together. "Oh, that's a good idea! Nothing wrong with further scrutiny, right?!"

"Yeah, I say that's only fair," Faye said. "I don't really want to believe Masashi's hiding anything from us… but after learning that he lied to us once about a somewhat important matter, I can't say I trust him enough to believe him..."

That most of the others showed agreement to Sorao's demand quelled all Masashi's hopes that he might save himself from this situation. Of all people, he had not expected Sorao to suddenly call him out and demand that his room be searched. He looked at the crowd, hoping to see anyone who might gainsay this suggestion, but to his horror, there were none who seemed keen to say anything against this; most were supportive of the idea, and among the few that seemed apathetic or apprehensive about it were Tanjiro, Haruyuki, Kasumi, and Mari. Strangely enough, he had expected Maiha to be overjoyed at the idea, but she instead looked puzzled by this turn of events, saying nothing as the others showed their support.

"Well, then, let's check it out!" Sorao said. "Let me lead the way!"

Without further discussion, the group began their journey from the Memory Bank to their abodes in the woodland kingdom.

_Why… Why have things unfolded like this?_ Masashi thought during the boat ride through the river. _Is this what I deserve for not being truthful in the first place?_

Such thoughts kept him silent throughout the journey.

When the group arrived back at the woodland kingdom's fourth deck, Sorao bade Masashi open the door. As soon as he did, Sorao and the other members of the throng rushed into the room, and Sorao headed over to the drawers.

"What the… What the hell is this?!"

And then came the dreaded moment: Sorao took out the shattered motive video, at which sight all the others gasped.

"Th-That… That looks like those videos we had a long time ago!" Arashi exclaimed, his pointing finger shaking.

"But how?" Sister Hikari said, gaping. "Didn't Futaba, Atsushi, and Mari destroy them all?"

"They did… at least, we _thought_ they did," Haruyuki said, raising a finger. "But if I remember correctly, it was Masashi that volunteered to clean up the mess."

Sayua snapped her fingers as she looked at Masashi with an unfriendly grimace. "So you saw that your motive video was still working and thought to hide it from us, didn't you?! Well, looks like the jig's up!"

"W-Wait… does that thing still work?" Hikari asked.

"I can't think of any other reason why Masashi would bring it here," Sorao replied. "But just to be sure..."

He turned on the video, and for the next minute, Masashi used all his will to keep his composure as all the others listened to every word and watched every sight in the video. They learned that Keiko, the Ultimate Maid, was now imprisoned in some dark, foul place, having apparently been kidnapped. By the time the video was done, Masashi had begun to feel a great pain in his chest, as if Sorao had ripped it open and exposed his heart for all to see.

"It's all clear now…" Sorao muttered quietly, disgust written all over his face. "Masashi… you found this video while cleaning up the mess. You brought it back here and hid it from the rest of us. And it was this very video that let you remember your younger sister after the second motive was given."

"So that's it," Murphy said, rubbing his earth in astonishment. "He went to the Memory Bank afterwards and met Maiha after he watched some of his memories…"

At this point, there was no point in trying to lie anymore. The ugly truth had been made known to all, and now he must reap what he had sown.

"Yeah… it's all true," Masashi answered softly.

"But why, Sir Masashi?" Kumi asked, eyes watering as if he had broken his favorite toy. "Why… Why did you lie to us? Why didn't you tell us you had your video?"

"I… I wanted something to remember Keiko by," he answered, nearly on the verge of tears. "The only other thing I had of her was my memories… and even then, they'd later be erased. In a way, I was lucky that I still had my video."

"So it's meant to be some kind of keepsake?" Tanjiro said, looking slightly more sympathetic than most of the others.

"I see…" Sorao said. "Well, now… time to finish what Lady Inoshishi started."

And at that moment, Sorao raised the motive video up high.

"Wait, no!"

But Masashi's cry fell on deaf ears, as Sorao swung it down onto the floor, the impact startling the others. The video was broken into sundry pieces, which were strewn throughout the floor.

"There... now that's one problem taken care of," Sorao muttered.

As the others gaped at such a sight, Masashi rushed there and knelt down, confirming that the video was no more. His tears began to drip down onto the remains, while he took in the realization that he could no longer listen to her voice or see her charming face unless in the realm of dreams and remembrance.

It might have been only a video, but it had been the only physical proof that there was a girl who was younger than he by two years, who was his younger sister, and whose name was Keiko Kousaki. And now, it was no more.

A moment later, the musician sighed as he set a finger on his chin, frowning. "You know, man, it's pretty disappointing that I have to say it, but clearly, you're not as harmless and truthful as I thought you were. Why, you ought to be locked up."

All the others gasped.

"W-Wait a minute..." Masashi looked up with an astounded face, wondering whether Sorao had misspoken. "You don't mean that, do you?"

"No, I mean every word of it," Sorao answered, opening up his arms as if annoyed. "You're a threat, and you deserve to be treated as such."

"B-But..."

"You've been deceiving us since the early stages of the killing game," Sorao went on, his tone no less harsh, a hint of anger in his eyes. "You hid your motive video from us, even though you _knew_ full well that keeping it around would only tempt you into killing. And you lied about the state of your memories. You knew full well that seeing your memories would tempt you, and yet you did it anyway!"

Sorao stepped between him and the crowd, blocking his view of the others as if he were trying to protect them.

"You had no good reason to hide your deceptions from us! The only reason I can think of is that you indeed _were_ tempted by the motives and would have killed, if Haruka and Abraham had not struck first!" he declared. "You don't actually truly have a plan to prevent any murders or help us escape, do you?!"

Masashi only flinched at such words, unable to think of anything to rebut it, and his silence was enough to mar his name even more.

_Why…? Why, Sorao, why…?_

All this time, Masashi had thought that Sorao was a cool and understandable fellow that simply wanted the best for everyone, even if his decisions were questionable. And yet, right now, he could not but feel a certain cruelty coming from him, as if he had been mistaken all this time. Though he had never entrusted Sorao with any special task or endowed him any special position, the sting that he felt from his verbal attacks did not hurt any less, as if it had come from a traitor.

He looked at the others, hoping that they would reject the proposal, but surprisingly enough, the reception seemed far too warm. Most of the crowd now looked at him warily as if he were some beast. Even Sister Hikari, who was among the few that had advocated that they give Kasumi another chance, looked uncertain at best, glancing down at her hands as she grimaced. Kumi, the usually blithesome storyteller, glanced away as well, uncertainty and fear all over his face.

"Well, now, let's make it official," Sorao said. "If you're in favor of removing Masashi from his leadership role and locking him up, say 'yea'—"

"Wait, hold on."

A certain voice interrupted Sorao's verbal assault, and Sorao turned around with a surprised one who had spoken up stepped forth from the crowd, and of all people, it was Mari, who had kept a nearly calm countenance all this time. Even when the motive video had been revealed, Masashi remembered only mild surprise from her.

"Huh? What's this all about?" Sorao asked.

"You said that Masashi didn't have a plan to help us escape," Mari said, "but I'm afraid you're mistaken about that."

"_What?!_" Sayua exclaimed, a few others crying out in surprise as well. "You're saying he's got a plan?! This is the first I've heard of it!"

Mari looked unbothered by the sudden inquiry. "Well, that's only natural, since Masashi thought it up not too long ago. After our arcade game night, Masashi came up to me and told me that he'd thought of a plan to potentially help us."

"Really?! What is it?!" Arashi said excitedly.

"To put it simply, his logic was that rescue forces might actually be having a hard time looking for us," Mari answered, crossing her arms, her expression blank. "He thought that we needed to send out a message."

"A… message?" Faye said, looking at her skeptically.

Mari nodded. "We need to send off some kind of distress signal so as to help rescue forces _notice_ us. Of course, Monokuma controls the ships, so we're greatly limited to what kind of distress signals we can send… but there is one option that we can try."

"O-One option…?" Hikari asked. "Wh-Whatever it may be, it'll likely do nothing…"

"Hey, come on, Hikari, at least let her finish, will you?" Murphy said, looking less grumpy than usual. "The way she's saying it, she sounds confident it may work."

Mari waited a few seconds before continuing. "Masashi looked around the closet by the staff lounge some more and noticed that there were actually some chemicals stored in containers. And with some of the other things available to us, we could try to make flares or fireworks of some kind."

"Fireworks, you say?!" Arashi said, the pyrotechnician in him clearly excited.

Sorao frowned, not looking convinced by her words. "I don't understand: why did he go to _you_ instead of any of us about his plan?"

Masashi tensed up as he awaited Mari's answer, Sorao looking at her with stern eyes.

"Because he wanted to know when the best time to launch a distress signal was, that's all," Mari answered. "It's been raining hard lately, and so he thought that the signal would be better noticed under clear weather. So he thought for some reason that I might have some expertise in predicting the weather."

"And then what did you say?" Haruyuki asked.

"I told him I didn't. I'm a phenologist, not a weather girl," Mari answered, chuckling a little. "But… I promised him that I'd try to help him with his plan, since I thought it was worth a shot. Of course, we would've told you about it earlier, had it not been for Monokuma's new motive and Maiha's revelation about Masashi's ridiculous, thoughtless deception. Isn't that right, Masashi?"

Masashi nodded hesitantly. "Th-That's right… I'm sorry that you've been told about this only now, but the circumstances… didn't really let me say anything about it earlier."

"Is that all you have to say?" Sorao shook his head disapprovingly. "Come on, you think you're off the hook now because of that?"

"Well, I sure think so!"

It was Kasumi, who looked at him with a sheepish smile as she opened up her arms a little.

"You say that Masashi doesn't have a plan, but it sure sounds like he has one, so I can't but think you're a tad harsh toward him!" Kasumi replied. "And besides, Masashi, you gave me a chance to show I'm truly sorry for my own deception. So even though you've been a bit untruthful with us, I think it's clear that you still want to help us, and this is a way to make it up to us! So what kind of girl would I be if I didn't return the favor?"

"Kasumi…" Masashi muttered as he raised his head, a little happiness seeping into his voice.

"I… agree as well." This time, it was Tanjiro, who looked as meek as ever, though there was a slight trace of boldness on his face.

"What? Tanjiro, buddy, are you serious?" Sorao said, eyes slightly widened. "Don't you understand Masashi's not really trustworthy? He's lied to us twice, man!"

"Even so… I don't think it's right to condemn him when he wants to make up for it," Tanjiro replied, shrinking back a little. "He's come up with a plan that can help us get out of here. I think it's clear he still cares about us."

Sighing out of annoyance, Sorao turned to the others, only to grimace upon seeing the lack of utter condemnation on their faces.

"I confess, I'm a little disappointed in what Masashi's done," Sister Hikari said. "Still... I'd like to place my faith in him one more time."

"I… I think so as well!" Kumi added, holding his teddy bear. "Sir Masashi's always seemed so kind! Even though it was bad to lie to us, I still want us all to get along… I don't want us to keep fighting!"

"Y-Yeah!" Arashi said. "Besides, the plan may work! As the Ultimate Pyrotechnician, I can help with fireworks or anything like them!"

Murphy scoffed as he crossed his arms. "I admit, my trust in him has dwindled a bit... but I suppose one more chance to let him fix this won't hurt."

And soon enough, the others fell in line, agreeing that Masashi should stay as leader as he worked to carry out his plan of sending out a distress signal. Unfortunately, their responses came with a great deal of doubt toward him; even with their consent to his continuing leadership, the trust that they had formerly held had, of course, not come back fully intact.

"Y-You guys...!" Masashi muttered. Still, at least it was better than being fully shunned.

Interestingly enough, the only one who had said nothing was Maiha, who looked more troubled by this turn of events than irritated. Masashi could have sworn that she had given Sorao the evil eye, but such an expression quickly disappeared, as she redirected her gaze to the other members of the crowd.

"What, is this what you guys all think?" Sorao scratched his head in befuddlement before he looked at Masashi. "Well…I guess the others are willing to give you a chance to atone for what you've done. If that's the case, then…"

Sorao paused for a few seconds before he continued. "I guess I should admit I was wrong about my approach… I owe you an apology, dude."

"An apology?" Masashi said.

"Yeah…" Sorao lowered his eyes as he heaved a sigh. "Now that I think about it… I got a bit carried away with my judgment of you. When I found the video, I got pretty angry that you'd deceived Lady Inoshishi and the others… so I naturally jumped to the worst conclusion. I'm very sorry about it."

Sorao then bowed down, and from his voice, it seemed that Sorao had seen that he had acted irrationally with his accusations. Masashi would like nothing more than to accept them and let bygones be bygones. He should be appreciative of the fact that Sorao had not pushed the issue anymore, having quickly figured out that he had pushed things a bit too far.

And yet, a different desire lay in Masashi's mind. It was the desire of saying, right before his face, "no". He could not point to any particular cause, but he sensed that Sorao had not truly felt sorrowful for his rash behavior, saying those empty words only because Masashi had barely managed to convince the others.

"Don't worry... it's no problem now."

Masashi wished that this were a befitting time to speak of his true feelings. But this was a time of apology, and it would be wrong to confront him about it now.

* * *

Once he had apologized to the others a bit more, Masashi asked all but Mari to leave his room, as he wanted to speak with her alone about the details of the plan to send a distress signal. After he bade them good night, the others left one by one, and Masashi made sure that the door should be absolutely shut.

Mari sat down on a chair, looking calmer than her usual self. Her body appeared to sway left and right ever so slightly, though she was noticeably trying to stay still for once.

"Now then, where do you want to begin?" she asked.

Masashi turned around, the hour and recent events having wearied him greatly.

"Why…? Why did you lie for my sake?" Masashi began.

She said nothing for a few seconds before answering.

"If I hadn't passed off my plan as yours, Sorao would've been convinced the others that you weren't actually helping them by finding a way to escape. Then you would have likely been locked up, I think."

"But why?" he asked. "Why did you decide to come up with the plan at the last second to save me?"

She leaned back on her seat as she set her hands on the sides of the seat's cushion. "Well, let me make one thing clear: I actually thought up the plan after we left the arcade. I looked around, saw what was available to us, and recalled what I'd once read about fireworks a long time ago. I was going to talk to you about it after tomorrow's breakfast… but needless to say, things were sped up a bit."

Masashi lowered his head. "And so it happened that you found an opportunity to introduce your plan..."

"I admit, the situation played out in my favor, since you were forced to accept my suggestion to save yourself," she said, "but I'm pretty sure that you would've accepted even if I had asked you normally."

Masashi sighed as she chuckled, her smile showing a little pride. He must admit that it had been a rather clever way to guarantee that he should accept her plan. Still, he was confused about her decision, and so he bade her answer the question once more. Mari said nothing for a few seconds, and he did not respond, preferring to let her take her time.

"The truth is… I enjoy spending time with you," she answered as she flicked away stands of her long black hair. "You rode the Haunted Woods ride with me… you asked me to go on a walk with you... and you played Battle on Blue Earth with me only a few hours ago… I had a lot of fun in those moments. It'd be a shame if you were suddenly gone."

Masashi, finding himself flustered, grabbed a nearby chair and sat by her. "Well, I admit it, I think you're fun to hang around as well. Still… weren't you concerned that I'd done these things behind your backs? I wouldn't exactly be surprised if you didn't think highly of me anymore."

She shrugged her shoulders as she showed a small smile. "I've never gotten the impression that you're a bad person, really, so I thought it was the right thing to lie for your sake. And even if I turn out to be wrong… whatever happens happens."

Even so, Masashi could not feel fully happy that things had turned out this way. The ugly truth had been shown at last, and he would have likely been locked up if it had not been for yet another lie. And this time, he was not the only one participating in this pretense. He wished that it were not so, but seeing that the other outcome would be worse, much as he loathed it, he must play along with the new lie.

"Wow… I… I guess I owe you one, huh?" he said. "I ought to repay you later."

"Repay me, you say?" Mari smiled once more, her eyes glinting. "If you want to repay me, get me some chocolate and read me some books on phenology."

"Well, I'll try to do the former, but as for the latter, I don't know where to begin—"

"Oh, if you don't know what books to begin with, I have a list!" Mari clapped her hands together, much energy entering her voice. "I'm pretty sure I've seen a few such books in the library!"

_Oh, boy…_ Masashi thought, feeling even more flustered by her greater energy. _She really seems serious about making me read those books…!_

The more he thought about it, the more certain he grew that Mari was among the few that he could rely upon at a time of need. He wanted to say the same for the others, but his relationships with them were now in jeopardy because he had broken their trust. And Mari seemed to be more normal than the others, which fact appealed to him. Indeed, he could use someone like her...

Without thinking, Masashi said aloud his thought.

"What do you think about becoming my deputy?"

Mari dropped her energetic disposition, resuming her usual calm attitude. "Hmm? Your deputy?"

Masashi paused for a few seconds, taking in his own words.

"Yeah… I've been thinking that I may need one to help me manage the group," he answered. "I think you'll make a good deputy. You seem to be able to keep a cool head in a crisis, and..." Masashi took a few seconds to gather his thoughts. "I think… having another perspective will help me greatly. I feel I can always go to you if I'm in any trouble."

For a while, Mari said nothing, appearing to be busy thinking, though Masashi had the impression that with such behavior, she might doze off sooner or later. Masashi began to think that his request had been a bit silly, but he figured that if it were silly, it was better that he be told so.

Eventually, she gave her answer.

"That sounds good to me."

Masashi smiled a bright smile, now that she showed her willingness to work with him, and his doubt was gone. "Thanks, Mari. I appreciate your help. At a time like this, I'll need your help more than ever. In fact, I want to ask you about something."

"Oh? Already? What is it?"

"It's about what happened after the motive was given," he explained. "Maiha and Sorao both played a key role in destroying most of the goodwill I had with the others. But there's one thing I don't get: it's easy to see Maiha's motivation for trying to overthrow me, but why did Sorao suddenly go after me?"

For some reason, Sorao had insisted that because of his deception, Masashi had likely planned to attempt a murder. It was such a foul and scathing accusation that Masashi could hardly believe that it was Sorao saying it. And though a little upset that Sorao had almost gotten him locked up, Masashi was sure that there had been something strange about his demeanor.

"Well, Sorao said that he got angry after seeing you had the video," Mari said, "so he felt inclined to think the worst of you… but you don't really believe that, do you?"

Masashi shook his head. "I don't know why… but when I heard his apology… something about it came off as fake. It was as if he had said it just because it was what was asked for."

He tried to come up with possible motivations, and at first glance, it seemed obvious that Sorao had wanted to overthrow him and become the new leader. But each time, he could not avoid a certain oddity: if Sorao had wanted the leadership all along, then why had he refused the position in the first place?

The others had recommended that he become the new leader since he had acted as Futaba's deputy, but he had refused, saying that he was still recovering from Futaba's, his dear lover's, death. But the more he thought about it, the more Masashi doubted that Sorao had been telling the truth, or at least the _whole_ truth.

"Hey, Mari," Masashi said, thinking it best that he hear her opinion. "What do you think Sorao's goal is?"

Mari gave no answer as she stood up from her seat. When Masashi glanced over to the side, he saw her walking back and forth in one spot.

"Hmm? What are you doing?" he asked.

"I find that walking helps me think when I'm stuck," she answered. "It's one reason why I don't really like the class trials. Why does Monokuma have us stand only on podiums all the time?"

"Maybe he can't afford chairs," he said cheekily to lighten up the mood.

After Mari walked about for a few more seconds, she stopped and sat back on her seat, setting her hands on her dark-blue hoodie's sleeves.

"Here's my hypothesis," Mari said. "I don't think the leadership's something that Sorao cares about that much. It may be important to some extent, but I think that's not his main focus. No, I think it's more to do with you."

"M-Me?" Masashi pointed at himself, to which Mari nodded in response. "You mean, he has some kind of grudge against me?"

"Maybe. Have you ever done something that pisses him off?"

Masashi shook his head. "No... I'm pretty sure I've never crossed him the whole time we've been here."

Mari tilted his head as she leaned back on her seat. "Just to be sure... you had never met him before this killing game began, right?"

He racked his brain for all the times when he had seen him or even heard of him. As far as he could remember, before the killing game, he had never seen him, met him, or even heard of him. But then again, he was not exactly into the music scene, being more into games and the like.

Besides, even if Sorao had met him in the past, it would not have explained why Sorao had been friendly toward him until tonight. Could his friendliness have been fake the whole time, then? Or could something have suddenly changed in Sorao, such that he would betray him? It was frustrating to think about his true intentions, given that all they had was speculation.

Thinking to look at it from a different angle, he tried to remember whether Keiko might have had anything to do with him, since she might have by chance met him or something. But after a while of recollection, it only ended in nothing gained. In the end, Sorao Mineta remained a figure whose motivations were shrouded in mystery.

_Wait, that's not right..._ he thought. _Tanjiro has__ prior history with him. And he even had a few things to say about him!_

* * *

_As soon as Sorao left the room, Tanjiro let out a great sigh of relief as he sat back against the couch, ease returning to his expression. It was as if to Tanjiro, Sorao were a weed whose sight was enough to ruin his otherwise pleasant walk through a garden._

_"I'm sorry you had to see that," Tanjiro said after a while, looking at Masashi normally, though his voice still showed a hint of weakness. "I was rather embarrassing with my behavior, didn't I?"_

_"I wouldn't say 'embarrassing', but… you were pretty awkward," Masashi replied. "You didn't seem at all willing to want to talk with Sorao."_

_Tanjiro let out a small groan. "I know… But I can't help it. You may not see it, but I have good reason not to feel easy around him."_

* * *

_The writer shook his head, his eyes lowered. "Since we were neighbors, it's not so surprising that we attended the same elementary school and the same middle school… From the very start, he was the popular kid that all loved, whereas I was the quiet one that hardly anyone wanted to hang out with."_

_"And I take it that he never tried to help you improve your standing?"_

_"Well, I asked him a few times whether I could join him and his friends on their activities…" Tanjiro answered, his voice growing quieter. "Sorao always said that he'd think about it… but in the end, he never bothered to reach out to me. He always pretended as if my asking him had never happened. I admit, I often doubted whether I remembered things right… but looking in hindsight, I'm very sure that Sorao was lying to me."_

* * *

_"Wait… Hang on a minute, Tanjiro," Masashi said, realizing something. "You're talking about what he was like when he was a kid. But isn't it possible that Sorao's changed since then? Maybe he grew up a bit when he started high school."_

_Tanjiro, however, sighed as he looked up at Masashi with a slightly surer expression. "I want to think that… but I assure you, he's the Sorao that I've known all this time. Trust me when I say that you shouldn't trust him at all."_

* * *

A few seconds later, a familiar feeling of doubt crept into his mind. Last time, Masashi had chosen to believe in Sorao and so had suppressed this doubt. But this time, the doubt felt much stronger, and the wound from Sorao's betrayal still smarted him enough to no longer put up any resistance against it. As doubt filled his mind more and more, Masashi recalled every moment when he had interacted with Sorao.

_Then... all those times... were they... fake?_

He recalled the first time when they had talked.

He recalled the time when Sorao had become lovers with Futaba.

He recalled the time when Sorao had lamented about the need to lie to Futaba about her former lover.

He recalled the time when Sorao had recommended that he become the leader.

He recalled the time when Sorao had relaxed with Tanjiro while Sayua had been playing her game.

He recalled the time when Sorao had said that he worked to make the world happy—

_Stop! I... I can't bear it anymore!_

At long last, the last resistance to his doubt fell.

He could no longer believe in the Sorao that the world knew.

He could no longer trust that Sorao had the best intentions for not only him but also the others.

He could no longer think of those times the same ever again.

"Why…?" Masashi muttered as he looked down at his shaking hands. "Why couldn't things have stayed the same?"

Of course, he knew the answer: Sorao had never been so truthful a man as he had thought him to be.

Even with Tanjiro's warning, he had mindlessly chosen to trust in him; Masashi wondered whether he would have somehow changed his mind about Sorao before his betrayal. Unfortunately, given that he had strongly believed that the group needed to trust one another, Masashi doubted that he would have given up his steadfastness. To put it another way, by this point, if Sorao had never betrayed him, he would have never believed in Tanjiro's tale of his two-sidedness. With how much it felt as if it had been set in stone, Masashi wondered whether all this had been destined to happen.

_No… Don't blame fate for this, Masashi. You're not blameless in this._

Yes, all this had started because he had chosen to hide his motive video. Of course, it was rather uncanny that after Futaba had bidden that all the motive videos be destroyed, his had been the only survivor. He had attributed it to luck, but now that all this happened, could he even call it "luck"? His given title of Ultimate Lucky Student grew less and less fitting as the killing game went on.

Whether or not it had been luck, in the end, he had willingly hidden the video. It was his choice that had led him to this outcome.

"Are you all right, Masashi?" Mari asked.

Masashi sighed as he raised his head, looking at the ceiling blankly. "Not really... how can I, when it's clear Sorao may have never been showing us his true self? The Sorao that I thought I knew may be truly a lie..."

There was the very small chance that Sorao had somehow meant well with his deeds, but at this point, he could not believe it. Sorao's betrayal had ground his willingness to believe in him into bits that had later been scattered away.

"Hey, now that I think about it..." he said. "Sorao decided to betray me _after_ Maiha had revealed my true reason for going to the Memory Bank. Could it be... those two are secretly working together?"

To his surprise, however, Mari shook her head. "They may be alike in their antagonism toward you, but their differences make an alliance between them unlikely. The greatest difference is that in their wealth. Maiha's rich and openly shows her dislike of commoners, whereas Sorao is poor and tries to act all cool and relaxed."

"Oh... I guess you have a point there."

"And another thing: even if Maiha somehow overlooked that difference, her deeds don't suggest that she was in league with Sorao," Mari continued. "When Sorao attacked you, not once did she utter a word of support."

"Yeah, she looked confused the whole time after my motive video had been exposed," Masashi added. "So I guess it's safe to say that Maiha and Sorao aren't in cahoots or anything."

Funnily enough, the conclusion soothed him a bit, since it meant that Maiha's intentions had more or less been what Masashi assumed them to be. She had simply wanted to persuade the others that he ought to be shorn of his leadership role.

"And we can assume that it's unlikely that she'll even think about forming an alliance with any one of us," she responded, showing some concern in her voice, though her expression remained mostly serene. "Don't forget that in response to the motive, she proposed that certain people be constantly watched."

Masashi gasped as he took a few seconds to understand what she was talking about. "Oh, yeah… the motive. The twenty billion yen... Sorry, everything that's happened swept me away, so it's slipped my mind."

He rubbed his head, feeling his cheeks redden from slight embarrassment. "I guess we should talk about it as well, since ignoring it doesn't seem like a wise idea. So what do you think of it?"

Mari tapped her chin with a finger. "This time, the motive doesn't involve anything threatened or stolen. It's wholly additive, and the reward is undeniably highly beneficial, to boot. That's why Monokuma passed it off as something to help us get ahead in our lives. So if one of us kills for this motive, it won't be done to right a wrong that Monokuma did us."

"Then who do you think are the likeliest ones to be tempted by the motive?"

"It's pretty meaningless to answer that, if you ask me. Money's a pretty important thing in our lives and can be used for many different reasons. Any of us, including me, would benefit somehow from it," she answered. "But if I had to guess... it'd be someone living in poor conditions like Tanjiro and Kumi. Like it or not, Maiha had a point. She would benefit from the motive the least since she already has a lot of money, whereas the poor students would benefit the most from the money."

"Hmm... I get what you're saying, but I'm not sure whether that's exactly the right approach here."

Though he understood her reasoning, he found it rather unbelievable that Tanjiro and Kumi would ever kill, from what he had seen of them. They might benefit the most from the motive, but both seemed like very kind and sweet guys, and unlike Sorao, they had shown no signs of having a fouler side. And Sorao also lived in a rather poor environment, so that was another strike against him.

"What should I do to discourage the others from going for the motive?" Masashi asked next.

"You could try to do some bond-building events, though given what's just happened, don't be surprised if the others come off as a bit lukewarm," Mari replied.

"Yeah, no denying that." Masashi hoped that relations with the others would go smoother tomorrow, since by that time, the others would have had time to cool off.

"In any case, I think our plan to send a distress signal will likely make the others think twice about killing," she said. "We're actually doing something to raise our chances of being rescued, after all."

The prospect that the plan might work excited Masashi, but then he thought about the other outcome: what if the plan were _not_ to work? What if help never came, despite their efforts to contact the outside world somehow? Then the group might become frustrated that his plan had not led to their rescue, and eventually, someone like Sorao might use the opportunity to overthrow him.

In a way, Mari had not actually saved him; she instead had delayed his downfall by a few days. Masashi could still feel how much Maiha's attack and Sorao's betrayal smarted in his heart, and the wound was not fully healed, the pain having waned for now.

But from glancing at her again, he grew not only in his appreciation of her but also in his gladness of the current state of affairs. Things had definitely not turned out as he had expected when the day had begun, but it could be much, much worse right now, and if his title of Ultimate Lucky Student truly meant anything, then the plan might work, and the whole ordeal would come to its sweet end at last.

There was a possibility of failure, but as long as there was a possibility of success, Masashi would not give up his hope.

"Yeah... You're right, Mari." Masashi smiled. "With this plan, and you by my side, maybe things will play out for the better. Maybe we'll escape this killing game."

* * *

**Hello, everyone! It's time for the motive! This time, it's very simple: the blackened gets a lot of money for killing someone. It's already been done in Danganronpa, but I thought that a simpler motivation might work here. It's not one of the commonest motives for crime for nothing. Sorry that I'm not particularly original this time.**

**Anyway, most of the chapter's mainly about the fact that Masashi's lies have come back to punish him. Aren't unintended consequences fun to deal with? At least Mari's the deputy now, and Masashi now thinks that Sorao may truly be an asshole, so that's swell.**

**Now that you know this chapter's motive and have seen how things have changed for the characters, I'm interested in hearing your theories and guesses on what will happen later. Which characters do you think will have died by the end of Chapter 3?**


	30. Thwarted by the Masked Player (6)

Upon Monokuma's usual morning announcement, Masashi woke up, feeling dread about what was to come. After he rose from his bed and got ready, he looked in his drawer once more and saw nothing. Indeed, the motive video that had once been there was now gone, the remains having been tossed away in his trash can. That it was no more proved clearly that last night had been no dream.

_Oh, man, I'm late…_ Masashi thought after checking the time. He looked out the window and saw that it was still rather rainy outside, the seas accompanied by great gray clouds and stark winds. It certainly was no weather that he would normally like to wake up to.

Not wanting to keep the others waiting any more, he quickly readied himself and headed up to the dining room, spotting no one along the way. He figured that all the others were already there, eating their breakfast. Still, when he opened the door, he could not but be surprised.

"Oh, Masashi, you're here at last."

It was Mari, who greeted him with a quiet yet reassuring look. Most of the others looked at him with a hint of mistrust that he had seen from them yesterday. Of course, there were a few such as Kasumi and Tanjiro looked much less harsh in their peers' suspicion, and though it was small in showing, the effect was nonetheless great in soothing Masashi's mind.

"Hey, dude! Hope you feel better!"

This time, it was Sorao, who sat at another table. When Masashi looked him in the eye, however, a sudden whelm of unease hit his body.

_Why…? Why do you look that way…?_

Though looking not at all unusual, Sorao's face disturbed him in some way. His smile was no different from his usual one, and yet Masashi could not think fully that it was truly a smile. He had no doubt that Sorao felt some degree of gladness, but there was too little bitterness, sorrow, or another such negative emotion on his face. The same could be said for his eyes, which came off as too understanding and tranquil; even the more sympathetic ones like Tanjiro still had some level of uncertainty on them.

It was as if Sorao were a masked player that simply followed the role that befitted the situation. He sounded so natural in his speech that he wondered whether he might be overthinking things. But in the end, as long as the sting of betrayal stayed, doubt would dwell in his heart.

"Yeah, I feel all right…" Masashi replied hesitantly, trying not to look mopey about last night's events. "I'm sorry that I overslept."

"Ah, no worries!" Kasumi replied. "That happens every now and then! One time, I ended up being late at a museum from which I was to steal a certain jar. Hoo boy, the police were sure puzzled about where I was!"

"That seems like an amusing anecdote," Haruyuki commented, smiling slightly. "I'd like to hear the details."

"Anyway, Masashi…" Faye said, looking at him uneasily. "Have you, uh, worked out what your plan is?"

"Yeah, it was something about shooting up fireworks or something like that!" Sayua said.

"Oh, uh… yeah, that's right," Masashi answered.

He then told everything that he and Mari had come up with, including her new deputyship. The two had refined the plan a bit more; right now, they planned to have Arashi make several flares to launch over the course of three days, so as to raise the chances of being spotted by nearby ships. Of course, Arashi would have to modify his work so that it might look less like fireworks, since a celebratory signal might convey the wrong message to nearby ships. As for making the flares, Mari would fetch him the materials, and so he needed not to worry about it. Throughout the meeting, the group quietly expressed their agreement to the plan, speaking no objections.

"If you ask me, though, I don't think it's likely it'll work."

The lone gainsayer, unsurprisingly, was Sorao, who had looked mildly unconvinced the whole time.

"Hmm? What makes you think that?" Mari asked.

Sorao shrugged his shoulders as he leaned back on his seat. "Well, don't get me wrong. I get what you plan to do, but let's face it: the chances that there are nearby ships are pretty low. We don't even know where we are, and the sea's far larger than you may imagine, so for all we know, we're in the middle of nowhere. That certainly would make continuing this killing game easy for Brightmere Research, don't you think?"

"That… That is a pretty good point…!" Arashi mumbled, gritting his teeth.

"Yeah, can't say I'd bet on its success," Sayua replied, among the more skeptical of the group, though it seemed that she showed more apathy than downright dismissal.

"Well, even so," Sister Hikari said, looking not at all skeptical. "I think it's worth a shot to try the plan out. The chances are low, yes, but we all know the old saw: nothing ventured, nothing gained."

Kumi, who was by her side, said nothing, though Masashi noticed that he was nowhere as excited or keen about the idea. Maybe it was confusing to him somehow, or maybe he was not paying attention, finding the subject to be boring.

"Yeah, don't feel let down," Faye said to Arashi. "With your help, there's still a chance we can end this once and for all. Don't let Sorao's attitude get you down."

"Hey, hey, I'm not going to stop you guys," Sorao said, raising his hands defensively. "I only want us to be realistic and adjust our expectations accordingly. I don't think we should be greatly surprised if the plan doesn't work, you know."

"Is that it?" Haruyuki said.

Sorao darted his eyes throughout the room as he crossed his arms. "Yeah… that's all I have to say."

As there were no more complaints or objections to hear, Masashi decided to end things there, and the group began the breakfast meal.

The others chattered as usual, some talking about their hopes that they would no longer have to play this twisted game at last, others talking about everyday subjects as if this were any other day in their daily lives. It was such an unremarkable sight that Masashi would ordinarily pay no attention to it.

But as he ate while speaking not a word, he could not but feel that there was something different about it. It was ever so slight, and to anyone else, it might not be able to be seen, but he could not overlook it: the air of wariness loomed over him. The others happily talked among themselves, but whenever they looked elsewhere, it seemed that they purposely wanted to avoid looking toward him, as if his very sight were foul. There were a few like Mari and Kasumi that did not show such behavior toward him, but he could not stop thinking about the overwhelming suspicion that loomed over him. It was no mystery as to why they were like that: he had broken their trust with his stupid selfish deceptions.

On the whole, he was but a normal, everyday guy. He had always been a rather friendly guy, always wanting to maintain good relationships with other people. He often chatted with his classmates back at school, played with his friends for leisure, and seldom got involved in trouble with any troublesome folk. He had never experienced such unease and mistrust from others as he now felt, whence this whole experience ought to be new to him.

And yet, it was as if he had trodden this ground before. He had been surprised by Maiha's and Sorao's attempts to overthrow him, but he felt hardly any confused by this aftermath, as if some part of him had already become familiar with it.

Wanting to get away from this eerie feeling, Masashi glanced at Sorao, who was engaged in friendly conversation with Faye and Murphy. The strategy to deal with him was to leave him alone for now. Masashi had wanted to confront him about his attempt to overthrow him, but she had argued that it would alert Sorao that he was onto him, whence he might try to do something unpredictable. And secretly warning the others about him might work, but she had warned that Sorao might notice the differences in the others' behavior and suspect that something was up. At best, Masashi ought to inform only those whom he trusted about Sorao's fishy nature.

Moreover, Masashi had let Mari in on the secret that Sorao had persuaded him to hide after the second motive: Futaba had already had a lover back home, but Sorao had lied to her about it and had become her "first" love. Supposedly, it had been to ward her from the temptation of regaining her memories of her forgotten darling. Of course, he now doubted that Sorao had had good intentions with it, and he had wanted to tell the others about it, but Mari had advised him not to say anything. Besides not wanting to alert Sorao, there was no actual evidence of the deception; it had all been verbal, and only Masashi had been the only other person aware of the deception. The group had been fully aware that Sorao and Futaba had been lovey-dovey after the motive, but that was no proof that Sorao had ever lied to her.

_If only I had told Futaba about this…_ Masashi thought. _Then maybe she wouldn't have died… Maybe she would've rejected him as her lover._

Nonetheless, thinking about what might have been was, he knew full well, a waste of time. Futaba was now dead, and no amount of regret would change that.

He noticed one other thing as well: Maiha had been glancing at Sorao, her gaze full of apprehension and suspicion. Though not thinking highly of her after her failed attempt to overthrow him, he still could not decide how dangerous she was. She was intelligent and cunning, but she was more or less predictable, her mindset and objective clear, and he begrudgingly admitted that her attempt had almost worked because he had given her the opportunity to do so. If he had never lied to the others, then she would have had nothing to reveal and use against him.

_It seems she's paying more attention to Sorao_ now... he thought. _Does she also think that he's suspicious?_

Setting that aside, he wanted to ask Mari one more thing, now that he had taken another look at the dining room.

"Where's the money that Monokuma put here last night?" he asked.

She pointed to the door to the port hallway. "Before you arrived, I had it moved to this ship's storage room. I thought keeping it here would only tempt the others some more."

"Yeah... Good move," he replied, nodding approvingly, but he knew that its loathsome sight had already been graven in the others' minds. The question now was what the others would do about it. Hopefully, the plan would help them ward off the temptation.

* * *

After breakfast ended, Masashi headed back to his room at once, wanting some time by himself. A while later, he heard a knock on his door, and it was none other than Sister Hikari.

"Hmm? What's up?" he asked, somewhat relieved to sense far less suspicion coming from her. With her open-mindedness, he was not surprised to see that she was far more willing to give him a second chance to make things up, though it still irked him a little that she still seemed careful around him. But at this point, he would not complain about such treatment, thinking it better than awkward silence.

"Ah, well… how shall I put this?" she said. "Do you remember how I asked you whether I might clean the storage rooms in the pirates' cove?"

He nodded, recalling a conversation that he had had with her that time. In that same conversation, she had mentioned her theory that Kumi's enthusiasm for fantasy was nothing more than a coping mechanism for separation from his parents.

"Well, I've finished cleaning them," she continued, "and I've found something rather… interesting. Let me take you there and show you what I mean."

Without asking her any more, Masashi followed her, and they made their way to the lower second deck of the pirates' cove. Along the way, he marveled at how dark the clouds were, even though it was around noon. The ship might be sailing through some rough part of the sea, and for a second, Masashi recalled Sorao's words and wondered whether the plan was bound not to work after all.

_No, I shouldn't think like this,_ Masashi thought. _I need to stay optimistic and hope that the distress signal will be spotted by someone..._

They arrived in the lower second deck and rushed over to the storage room nearer to the ship's bow. When they stepped inside, Masashi was at once blown away by the room's tidiness; formerly, such sundry objects as mannequins and boxes were strewn throughout the room, and so one could hardly wend one's way through the room without bumping into something. But now, the mannequins, boxes, and suchlike had been gathered and put alongside the walls, and thus, one had far more freedom to move around in the middle.

There was, however, one peculiar item that Masashi did not notice at once, for the mannequins had been set on each side thereof. Some feet before the door stood a machine that looked much like a cannon. Since it sat on a rectangular base fixed to the floor, the muzzle, having several small chambers, was at nearly the same height as Masashi, and it faced toward the left.

"Wh-What the heck is this thing?" Masashi asked, carefully nearing it.

"Ah, that's… a shooter, according to Monokuma," Sister Hikari said. "To be clear, it's meant to shoot paper arrows. I saw it the first time I came here, and I thought it was a prop at first, but when I tried to move it during the cleaning, I found that it was truly part of the room."

Masashi looked at the shooter with uncertainty. "Why in the world is this here?"

"To be clear, it's not actually used anymore," she answered. "Apparently, according to Monokuma, it was part of an obstacle course, since this ship's designers had that idea in mind at first. It's designed such that it gets its supply of arrows from a room underneath."

"So why did Brightmere Research decide not to use it?"

Sister Hikari set a hand on her cheek. "I don't know the answer to that… but if I had to guess, I'd assume that they simply decided it didn't fit with the final design for whatever reason. I wouldn't worry too much about it."

"I see…"

Masashi walked around some more and noticed that there was a panel on the wall that the cannon faced. The panel had a small red button on it, and Sister Hikari said that it was the button to activate the shooter. He pressed it, rushing off to the side at once, and indeed, a slew of paper arrows flew from the muzzle and hit the left wall, though they left no mark and fell onto the ground with thuds. The projectiles kept coming from the cannon for a short while, and by the time it had stopped, the paper arrows had handily gathered into a pile.

"That... certainly was a sight to see," Masashi said, still recovering from his amazement. Though they were made of paper and seemingly not lethal, he was sure that were he hit by them, his body would be smarting for a while. And the very sight of them still startled him, since they seemed to be about as large as regular arrows. "Is there anything about it that bothers you, Sister Hikari?"

"Well, nothing, exactly, though I think it may prove to be a bit unsafe if someone gets hit by the arrows," Sister Hikari said. "I wanted to let you know about it, so that you might decide what to do about it."

Masashi took one more glance at the cannon, which made no sound or movement as it glanced back at him with its dark muzzle. For some reason, even though the only thing that it shot out was paper arrows, he had a feeling that leaving it be was not a good idea at all. Though no one could take it out of the room, he still suspected that it might be misused somehow.

"I think you should try to see whether you can disable the machine somehow," he said. "Sure, it's nothing fatal… but I still don't think it'd be good if someone were to accidentally activate it."

Sister Hikari nodded. "I'll see what I can do. If I should find that it can't be disabled, then shall I put up a warning about the button?"

"Sounds good to me," he replied. "And, uh, one more thing…"

She raised her brow. "Hmm? What is it?"

Masashi stopped for a few seconds as he felt his cheeks redden. "Thank you for giving me a chance to make it up to you guys. I know I had been acting rather… questionably, but I can see why one may think I was up to something suspicious. Once again, I'm very sorry… Rest assured, though, I'll strive to realize our escape from this twisted killing game."

The nun had opened her mouth in surprise, and once he was done, she looked at him in bewilderment before she answered.

"Oh, well, you don't need to apologize once more, Masashi!" she said, a little flustered. "As I said before, I was a bit disappointed to hear what you'd done behind our backs, but I don't think it'd have been right if I had denied you a chance to redeem yourself. And setting that aside, I still believe that you're not a bad person, though some of us think otherwise."

"I… I appreciate your compliment," Masashi said, trying to sound humble, even though it was he that was of higher status here. Nonetheless, he was ever so thankful that he had not lost Sister Hikari's backing, and he could always trust her to do whatever he asked her to do.

* * *

Masashi headed off to the arcade, wondering whether anyone was there. As he entered the room, he saw no one, but he heard the familiar sound of the playing of a machine coming from elsewhere. It appeared to be from the staff lounge, so he left the arcade, walked through the short hallway, and opened the ever so creaky door.

"Oh, it's only you…"

The one playing on one of the machines was Murphy, who seemed to have been enjoying himself, but all glee left his face once he had noticed Masashi's presence. It was not so surprising that he would still be wary around him, given that the man usually was a little standoffish; he certainly was far from being the friendliest of the group.

"Is there something you want from me?" he asked roughly. "Let me warn you, I'm stronger than I look, so don't even think about pulling anything funny."

Masashi held in his desire to let out a sigh; though he had already expected such unwillingness to fully trust him, hearing the expression of that unwillingness did not fail to feel tiring somehow.

"I promise you that I'm not up to anything," Masashi answered, keeping his friendly tone. "I only want to see what you're doing."

Murphy scoffed as he leaned back on his chair, the game screen showing that he had finished his game session. "I'm focusing my efforts on raising my tokens. I hate to admit it, but some of the prizes here interest me. For example, some fancy equipment's apparently offered."

"Equipment? You mean, like shovels and the like?" Masashi replied.

"That's more or less it. Monokuma hyped it up as 'state of the art', so I think my family back home may like it. It'll certainly make the farmwork easier..."

Murphy then sighed, tipping the brim of his straw hat as a frown appeared on his face.

"How I dread going back…" he mumbled. "The farm's full of those loathsome crops, but it's all my fault things are that way…"

Such words could not but pique Masashi's interest, as he had known for a while that for some reason, Murphy greatly loathed his Ultimate talent, but until now, he had left the matter alone, seeing that the man wished not to delve into it, though his curiosity was left to endure the lack of fulfillment.

"Hey, Murphy… Could I ask you something?" Masashi asked. "Why don't you like being the Ultimate Potato Farmer?"

Murphy paused for a few seconds as his eyes darted throughout the room. Eventually, he heaved a great sigh as he shook his head.

"So it's _that_ you want to ask me…" Murphy said. "And to think, I thought you and I could be friends."

"Well, if you don't want to tell me, then that's all right," Masashi replied. "I was only curious, that's all."

Murphy scoffed. "Oh, don't give me that answer. It only shows you still want to know, and you're going to bother me later about it while trying to sound more convincing."

That Masashi could not deny; it was his curiosity's bidding that he ask him once more, even though he understood the man's reluctance to talk about his past.

For a few moments, there was an awkward silence between the two, but eventually, Masashi bore it no longer and so spoke.

"Murphy, it sounds like you did something that you now heavily regret," Masashi said. "If you tell me your tale, maybe I'll understand why you feel the way you do now. But if you don't, all I can do is guess…"

Murphy did not even look angry as he leered at him. "Well… I'd normally tell you to simply go away… but I can't deny you're right about that. You'll keep thinking I'm 'wrong' in my mindset if you don't understand it in the first place."

Masashi let out a small smile, relieved that Murphy had dropped his steadfastness on the subject. Now he could hear of what the man had hidden from the rest of them at last.

"To begin with..." Masasshi said. "How did you become the Ultimate Potato Farmer if you've never liked it?"

"'Never'? I don't like it now, but I won't deny that I _formerly_ liked it," Murphy said. "When I was a child, my parents wanted to get away from city life, so they decided to start a farm in the Irish countryside. At first, we grew many different kinds of crops. It was not only potatoes, you see. But my parents let me start off with potatoes, thinking that it was a good place for me as a beginner, and they were definitely delighted to see that I liked to grow them. I kept asking them whether I might grow more and more potatoes, and they agreed to it."

Masashi found it hard to imagine that Murphy had once been enthusiastic about it. But then again, people could change dramatically over time, and he thought back on how childish and reckless he had been in his childhood.

"Potatoes were the only thing that I grew," he continued. "My parents encouraged me to grow something else, but in the end, they never went against me when I insisted that we stick with potatoes. Soon, the variety of crops on our farm dwindled and dwindled, and eventually, it became the only thing that we grew. We chose to specialize in potato farming, so it's now the only thing that we sell to our local markets. Potato farming's our only source of income."

"So what's the problem?" Masashi asked. He knew little about farming, aside from the snippets that he would hear from one of his friends, but he had heard that growing only one kind of crop was not an unusual practice.

"To put it simply… I got tired of it," Murphy said. "It occurred to me one day that potatoes had made everything around me the same. We grew fields of potatoes, we had potatoes as part of our meals, and we made some good cash out of potatoes, but it was all the _same_. It bugged me to see my life be dominated by something that I had formerly held dear! But it was too late by that point… we were already hard set in our routine. Changing it would… bring about complications, to put it simply."

"S-So that's why you dislike your talent?" he said amazedly. "That's…"

It was not a problem that he often encountered, being a citizen and thus far removed from the harsh realities of farming. Trying to put in more general terms, he understood that Murphy had once liked something to an unreasonable degree, and by the time he got over his obsession, he had found himself trapped in a situation in which he could not escape his former beloved thing. And it was a situation of his own making; there had been opportunities to change things, but it had been too late by the time he had grown willing to change.

"I bet you think it's silly..." Murphy said after a while of silence. "My dislike of potatoes is due to something that small. Nothing to do with any old history and the like. You would've preferred an epic tragedy, wouldn't you?"

"N-No, not at all! Even if it's something small... it still changed your life greatly," Masashi said. "And I understand that it's something that you wish you could change, but you can't for various reasons, so you have to live your daily life having to deal with the consequences that you didn't think through carefully. It's not silly at all."

"Is that so…?" Murphy said, looking none too happy, though showing far fewer signs of irritation. "Well, I hope you've learned something from my sorry experience. Think of it as a cautionary tale."

"What? What do you mean?" Masashi asked.

"Let me put it this way: you think you love everything that you have right now," Murphy replied, "but a day will come when you realize that your love has ended up hurting you in the long run. So you ought to think carefully about your current… obsessions and whatnot."

"Uh, all right... I can't say I have any obsessions or anything, but I'll keep that in mind."

He was a normal guy, and though he was an avid fan of a few hobbies, it was not what he would call an obsession. What was there to obsess over in his everyday life?

In any case, it pained Masashi to see that Murphy would not think about embracing his Ultimate talent once more. It might not be anything special, but there was something about Murphy's steadfastness that was sad. He had a special skill, and yet he saw it more as a burden than a part of him that he could think about in his own terms.

"Murphy… Don't you think you may be a little harsh toward yourself?" Masashi asked. "I mean, I understand why you don't like potatoes anymore, but still, you're an Ultimate. It's something that most people aren't, so it's a bit of a shame that you want to forgo it…"

Murphy frowned, his shoulders looking much tenser.

"Let me make one thing clear," Murphy said. "I'm only doing potato farming out of necessity, but I'll be damned if I let it be my future. Someday, I'll find a way to get myself out of these circumstances and be able to choose something that I actually like. Understand?"

Much as he wanted to gainsay this, Masashi could see that doing so would only upset the man more, and so he meekly nodded.

The disgruntled farmer then beckoned toward the door. "Now, could you leave me alone? I'd like to continue my game, and you'll only make me lose my concentration."

"Huh? Oh, all right..."

And with no further words, Masashi left the room, leaving him to his own devices. It seemed that for now, recalling his sordid history had displeased him greatly and thus bereft him of his willingness to give up his loathing. But maybe if he talked with him later, with a cooler head, things might change.

* * *

Masashi decided that he needed a change in pace for his usual activities. He headed off to the secret library, wondering whether he might find something interesting there. When he arrived there, however, he saw Tanjiro sitting at one of the tables in the hidden library.

"Oh, hey, Masashi. What's up?" the writer asked meekly.

"Could I hang out with you?" he said. "I'm interested in hearing more about your writing."

"Really?" Tanjiro said as it appeared that his interest had been piqued. "Well, is there anything in particular you want to learn about?"

"Last time, you talked about your work _The Koto Players_, I think," he replied. "And you mentioned that you had a few ideas for your eighth book."

"Oh, yeah, I believe I said something like that…" Tanjiro paused as he leaned back on his chair. "Well, are you _sure_ you want to hear them? I mean, it's nothing exciting, since these are only rudimentary ideas and whatnot…"

Tanjiro grew feebler in his voice, such that it almost came off as pathetic, but Masashi sensed a great deal of uncertainty oozing from him, as if he were treading on unfamiliar ground. It was not so surprising, since he had the impression that Tanjiro usually spent time by himself, being more introverted, and so he was not so outgoing as other people.

"I'm no writer, but still, I'd like to hear what you have in mind," he said. "Besides, you can think of it as a chance to show off your writing process and the like."

Tanjiro raised his eyes, looking a little surprised. "Oh, well, if that's what you say, then… I guess it's all right to tell you. Well, to begin with, I was thinking about writing a romance this time, and it takes place in a more traditional setting. A young samurai falls in love with a noble girl, but because of his shabbiness in combat and his humble origins, he faces contempt from a noble courtier who too loves her."

"Oh, so it's a love triangle," Masashi said. "That's certainly something we've seen before."

Tanjiro sighed. "Yeah… it's nothing unique. The idea is that the hero faces many obstacles as part of his character development, including exciting battles against enemy clans. I was thinking about adding a few special aspects, though. For example, maybe the hero can be a musician as well, and one of his strengths is his ability to play the flute."

"Hmm… I guess that can work somehow, if you're writing what you know," he replied, remembering how great an interest Tanjiro had in music. "But if you ask me, maybe it's better that he be not a skilled musician in the beginning. Maybe one of his weaknesses is his lack of skill with the flute, so he has to get better at it as part of his growth. Then maybe once he gets good with it, he can get the girl of his dreams."

Tanjiro nodded along, showing some approval. "That makes a lot of sense, now that you mention it. I guess I can have him be like that… and maybe I can rewrite the heroine so that she may be more involved with music, and have the noble rival be skilled in it already. And maybe as part of the hero's growth, he learns about how he can add his own charm to his music, which leads to his earning respect..."

For the next few minutes, the two brainstormed many ideas. Tanjiro appeared willing to accept such suggestions as making the hero be a friend of another noble girl in the court, so that he might have someone to talk to as an intermediary between the hero and the heroine. Tanjiro, however, appeared far less willing to think about the suggestion of having the flutes be magical and have some kind of connection to magical ghosts; Masashi had come up with it as a way to make it feel more exciting by having them help him with their powers, but the writer said that he wanted the work to feel grounded and realistic, so he simply said that he would have to think about it later. In the end, however, Tanjiro looked happy at what he had written down,

"I have a far more solid basis to work on," Tanjiro said blithely, having written down his ideas on a small notepad. "Thank you for the many suggestions. Even though some of them are… tricky to work with, I think that you've helped me greatly."

"Oh, no, no, it's nothing, really…" Masashi said. "Anyway, I think this whole experience has been pretty interesting. It's kind of cool to help you with your writing."

Tanjiro showed a little smile as he leaned forward a little, his shoulders slumped. "Um… You know, Masashi… I'm glad that you helped me with coming up with ideas for my next work… But I'm also glad that you even offered to hang out with me in the first place. Even though I'm a famous writer, not a whole lot of people still think to spend time with me."

"Oh… So I take it that you're not the kind of guy who's given a lot of company to enjoy, huh?" he replied.

"No…" Tanjiro then sighed as he lowered his eyes, tiredness entering his voice. "It started way back in my childhood. My younger brother, Tadaomi, would often say how much he hated being related to me as a way to taunt me… And the rest of my family, though not at all malicious or disrespectful, didn't really support me that much."

"What, really?"

The writer shook his head. "My mother, being ever so busy to provide for me and my other siblings, didn't really notice how much we didn't exactly get along. And so at school, the… _aggressive _students had no qualms about picking on me. Hardly anyone ever came into my defense."

"Wow, that sounded pretty tough," Masashi remarked. "It's a shame that your family didn't really step in to help you there."

"I appreciate your words, but there's no need to feel bad for me, truly," Tanjiro said as he scratched his cheek. "Since I didn't really spend a lot of time with my peers, I wound up passing the time through studying… It's what led me to read a lot about history, especially music history. If things hadn't gone the way they did, I might've never become interested in those subjects. There's no way to know, truly."

"Then I take it you're not the kind of person who wishes that things had gone differently?"

"Don't get me wrong, it would've been swell if I'd been treated decently, but…"

Tanjiro then looked up at him with a more purposeful and bolder expression, placing a hand on his own chest. "I don't think it's of any use to wallow in pity about the past. I'd rather learn from it to change the future for the better… I'd rather have us all be more caring to one another."

Such a declaration amazed Masashi, who thought it to be a rather admirable outlook. However lacking in strength the writer might be, there was no doubt that he was not the kind of man who would simply stand by and let the future play out however it might.

Tanjiro sighed before he put up another smile. "Once again, thanks for spending time with me. I don't often talk with other people about my writing, so I appreciate the time I've spent with you."

The writer got up as he headed over to a nearby shelf, reaching for a book. "If you want, you can help me again later. I'm always open to hear your thoughts."

* * *

"Greetings, Masashi. Is there anything about which you would like to talk with me?"

Though Masashi had already grown to his usual eerie behavior, it did not make Haruyuki come off as any warmer to him. There was something a bit weird about him, but he at least seemed harmless enough, and being an art critic, he might have some interesting perspectives on certain matters. Haruyuki stood by one of the pools in the lower third deck of the pirates' cove, apparently having been looking at his reflection.

"You don't seem at all bothered by me," Masashi said.

"Why ought I to be?" Haruyuki replied calmly. "I do not think that you pose a threat to me, though you intrigue me in a few other ways. Yes, there's something about you that shows you're more than you think yourself to be. At least, that's what I think."

Here he was again, with his cryptic speech. Masashi wondered whether he was even doing it on purpose, or whether this was simply how he usually talked. His tone made it seem as if he were detached from all this and thus did not care about how things had played out, but there must be more to him than that impression suggested.

"Anyway, what have you come to see me for?" Haruyuki continued.

"Well, you know, I only want to hang out with you," he answered. "And you're kind of interesting, if you ask me. It's not every day that I get to meet someone like you."

Haruyuki chuckled in his usual eerie manner. "So you wish to delve into my background? I suppose that sooner or later, I would intrigue you with my behavior."

_That's putting it lightly,_ he thought.

The art critic raised a finger calmly. "Very well, then. You've interested me enough that I do not mind divulging a few details about myself. What about me do you wish to know?"

"Um… to begin with, you're an art critic. That's a rather peculiar occupation, isn't it? So what made you become one?"

The man paused for a few seconds, looking as if he were meditating. Eventually, he gave his answer.

"It's nothing complicated, I assure you, but I suppose that's up to you to decide," he said. "To begin with, my tale begins not with me but my parents. They were still a pair of saps in university when they met and fell in love with each other. Then they decided to wed each other and have a child together, while depending on their parents for their income. What a pitiful and reckless move, really."

"You… don't seem to think highly of your parents."

Haruyuki raised his brow. "Did I give off that impression? Interesting… but I'm afraid you're off the mark a tad bit. I don't dislike them, truly, and I certainly would do what I can to take care of them if need were... but I find them _tiring_ in many ways. They're the kind of people who attend events only because they hear some mainstream figure plans to be there… And they scrutinize others by such standards as what kind of wine they drink… What pitiful and shallow folk they are."

"I… I see…" he replied, marveling at how apathetic he sounded the whole time. "So what happened next with your parents?"

"As luck would have it, my father found a job in a film studio," Haruyuki continued, "and my mother later became a writer for children's cartoons. In other words, I had many opportunities to see what was 'behind the scenes' of TV programs."

"Wow, that must've been pretty cool," Masashi remarked. "You must've been pretty happy to know how your favorite shows were made."

To his surprise, however, Haruyuki shook his head as he clicked his tongue. "It's interesting that you think so… but alas, I think otherwise. Such knowledge instead led me to see how… _formulaic_ those shows came off as. I saw how things _must_ be done a certain way for the audience, whence it came off as rather fake or at least not as entertaining anymore."

"Oh…"

Masashi dropped his smile, shocked to hear how knowing the creative process had actually ruined things for him instead of raising his enjoyment. "That's… kind of sad to hear, if you ask me."

Haruyuki chuckled once more. "I'm more open-minded about it, now that I've broadened my knowledge on fiction. But right now, I talk about the past and not the present, so I shall not delve into that. In any case, I did not find that much enjoyment in art until I was twelve, for that was when I discovered a certain game."

"Really? What was it?"

"It was nothing that you would have likely heard of," he answered. "It was an indie RPG, and I decided to give it a try, since it was free to download. And it was…"

That was when a rush of glee entered the man's countenance, his eyes glinting, his arms opened up, his gaze directed heavenwards.

"It was such a _beautiful_ experience!" Haruyuki said, speaking more quickly than usual, which nearly made Masashi jump up in surprise. "The gameplay was something that I had more or less seen before, but that did not detract from my experience at all! Yes, the soundtrack captivated me with how dissonant and yet orderly its arrangement was! The setting's atmosphere was very strange and otherworldly, what with how I was always reminded of how _magical_ its environment was! And the world was given far more focus through its environment rather than conventional storytelling from its characters! It was brilliant to see how all these aspects were tied together to create one lovely image, insofar as I felt as if I were living in it!"

Masashi said nothing at first, blown away by his bombastic attitude. It was as if Haruyuki had been possessed by some kind of ghost, whence this new ghost had animated the usually quiet and composed man's body. In any case, it was such a bizarre sight to behold that Masashi could not but reassess his image of the man.

"Uh, are you all right, Haruyuki?" he asked once his wits had returned.

A second later, Haruyuki dropped his bombasticness, his calm demeanor returning. "Ah, I apologize for that, Masashi. It is simply that the game I mentioned was something the likes of which I had never seen before. To this day, it still stands among my top favorite works. I should tell you more about it, but I understand that I'd get off-topic."

"Well, it's pretty clear you liked the game a lot!" he replied, wondering what exactly the game was. From how he had described it, it sounded like a one of a kind game, though he suspected that Haruyuki might be overhyping it. "Anyway, what happened next?"

"After I was done with the game," he answered, "I decided to look up what other people thought about it. At first, I was simply curious as to whether other people agreed with me, but as I read reviews and watched people play through the game, I came to a certain realization: I liked to hear other people's opinions about the game, for it produced an experience that we all shared, even though we were but strangers.

"And it is these differing opinions that made me appreciate the game more," he continued. To me, the worth that art has is not determined only by what one man thinks. No, it is what _others_ think about it as well. How well does the work emotionally affect others? It is only from hearing their opinions that one may determine whether it is a _true_ masterpiece."

"I… I think I get what you're getting at," Masashi replied, interested in the roots of the man's career. "So is that the start of your career as an art critic, then?"

Haruyuki nodded. "I wanted to experience more of this art and share my opinions with others, and so I dived into the world of fiction, playing all kinds of games, reading all kinds of books, watching all kinds of shows, listening to all kinds of songs… One may say that it became my objective to discover mankind's beauty by partaking in its art.

"At first, I shared my criticisms with my friends at school, but since my criticisms became too impractical to convey orally, I made a blog for them," he continued. "Of course, there are tens of thousands of bloggers with similar objectives, so I did not particularly stand out at first. My main remarkable trait, however, was my in-depth analyses, according to my followers. They much enjoyed my opinions on the relationship between the worth of art and its emotional effects."

"I see…"

However weird and eccentric Haruyuki might be, Masashi could see that he had a certain appeal to him with how he saw fiction, and it did not surprise him to hear that Haruyuki had grown a fondness for it, insofar as it almost felt like a core part of his personality; it was pretty clear that his analytical mindset of fiction was not limited thereto, for his quiet and observant behavior seemed ever so present. Still, Masashi could not deny that there was still something weird about him, as if he had barely delved into the man's world. What kind of secrets was such a man as this hiding?

The art critic then clapped his hands together. "Well, now, I believe that should be enough to fulfill your curiosity on how I came to earn my Ultimate talent. Though lacking much in action and conflict, I believe that it's a tale simple enough to explain my motivation. Of course, I'd like to hear what _you_ think about it, my good friend."

* * *

Masashi wanted to spend time with the others some more, but now, he had a headache, and so he told Mari that he would head back to his room, feeling tired. For the remainder of the afternoon, he lay on his bed, resting as he listened to the waves beating against the ship. He did not know when he fell asleep exactly, but when he awoke, he saw that dusk had just fallen, the very last bit of sunlight off in the horizon.

_Ah… At least I feel better now._

Seeing that it was about time for dinner, he quickly made his way up to the dining room. But to his surprise, there was only one person who appeared to have been awaiting him.

"Hey, Masashi! Hope you're feeling better!" Kasumi said. "Before dinner began, Mari told us that you were resting in your room, so I was kind of worried that something might be up!"

"Oh, I appreciate your concern, but don't worry, I'm not sick or anything…" Masashi said before he realized something. "Wait a minute… Are you saying that you guys had dinner earlier?"

"We sure did! Oh, but don't worry, we didn't forget about you," she replied. "Sister Hikari asked me to save some food for you, so that's why I'm still here!"

"Ah, I see. I'm not so surprised that she would go to such lengths…" he said as he sat down by her. "I ought to thank her later for this."

"And me for keeping watch!" Kasumi said, her expression turning somewhat haughty. "I've already eaten, but the sight of this food makes me want to have seconds, if truth be told."

"Uh, thanks, I guess..." he said, looking at her with dumb bemusement for a few seconds. "All right, then, time to eat."

As he ate, he tried to ignore Kasumi's gazing at his food; she already had her dinner, and he suspected that she would try to coax him into giving him more. Funnily enough, he did not mind her gazing all that much, as he at least appreciated that she was not looking at him in such a way that brought about unease in him.

After he was done, Kasumi clapped her hands together. "Now that you're done, do you mind helping me with something? It's nothing huge, really. You know how I would play pranks on Arashi, right?"

"It's not something I'd easily forget," he said. "Why are you bringing that up?"

She waved her hand as she smirked. "You see…. I'm thinking that it's time that I reconciled with him."

He widened his eyes, wondering for a moment whether he had misheard her.

"You may not have noticed it, but even after my declaration of turning a new leaf, he still doesn't seem to trust me that much," she continued. "So I think if I take the first step to mend things, then maybe he'll think differently!"

"When you put it that way, it makes sense," he replied. "But what do you exactly have in mind? Are you thinking of buying him a gift or something?"

Kasumi nodded, smiling. "I'm thinking of buying something from the arcade! In fact, you should go with me, Masashi! With you, maybe you can help make things go smoothly."

As he would rather that she not mess things up somehow, Masashi accepted her invitation, and so he followed Kasumi to the arcade, the rain having abated for now. When they arrived, there was no one else there, though the lights from the machines and the piece playing from the speakers gave the place an easy, soothing vibe.

"Ooh, what should I get?" Kasumi said playfully, looking at the prizes set on the many shelves behind the counter. "What do you think about _that?_"

She pointed at the shelf that carried a bow and a quiver that apparently held many arrows. The list put on the counter called it "authentic archery equipment", and the bow cost about five hundred tokens, though the quiver of arrows were surprisingly cheap, costing only ten tokens.

"Nah, I don't think it's fitting at all," Masashi replied. "Besides, I don't think he's one for archery, anyway."

"Hmm… then what about that?"

She pointed at a loudspeaker and a receiver set on a lower shelf, and they cost about two hundred tokens. "You think he's in need of those?"

"I don't think so…" he replied. "You know, you seem to be focused on giving him something practical, but maybe you should choose something that simply looks good."

"Really?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure something simple fits him more," he answered.

He waited as Kasumi looked at the prizes once more. Eventually, she pointed at a pair of bracelets that looked as if they had been made out of pink roses.

"I much like the look of that," she said. "What do you think?"

"It's a good choice," he replied. "I think it's simple enough, and the imagery isn't too bad, either."

Kasumi giggled as she clapped her hands once. "Well, then, it's decided! I'll go with that one!"

She paid for the pair of bracelets, which cost about one thousand and five hundred tokens; the price was ridiculously high, in contrast to the low price of the archery equipment, but seeing that she had made a great success from last night's game session, she could easily afford it. Now that he had a closer look at the bracelets, he thought that they were kind of tacky, but it was still a good gesture to give them as a gift of reconciliation.

Afterwards, the two left the arcade to look for Arashi. According to Kasumi, Arashi was nearly done and planned to finish it tomorrow, but she did not know where he had gone after dinner. They looked around the ship a bit before heading down to the lower third deck, and at first, they saw no one there. But just as Masashi thought to search elsewhere, he looked at the part of the deck that had the boat ride, and he noticed that its signature vehicle was nowhere to be found. It might be that Arashi was riding it; this deck was split into two levels, and the boat ride was incorporated into both levels.

And sure enough, a few seconds later, something could be heard coming from above, and it was the boat, which quickly slid down the water slide, causing water to be splashed to the sides. Their search for Arashi came into an end once he disembarked from the boat.

"Huh? Oh, it's only you two!" Arashi said, looking rather surprised to see them. "What are you doing here?"

"To begin with, Kasumi has something to say to you," Masashi began.

"Huh? What does she want from me?" Arashi said, looking a little peeved at her presence.

"Um, well…" Kasumi said. "I've come here for one purpose only! I wish to reconcile with you!"

"H-_Huh?_" Arashi cocked his head to the side, looking at her with bemusement. "Wh-What are you talking about? What's this about reconciliation? Is this another prank of yours?"

"No, no, in fact, I wish to apologize for my mischief!" she replied. "I realize that you don't think highly of me from all those silly moments, but I want to assure you that I've changed! I don't want things between us to stay awkward!"

"I… I see…" Arashi replied, still looking astounded, though he noticeably looked calmer than usual. "I have to admit, this all feels rather sudden! I certainly didn't expect you to come to apologize, with how, uh, silly you usually act."

"Well, I know it may seem unbelievable, but I simply want us to start getting along!" Kasumi said. "In fact, I want to give you this!"

She then took out the bracelets and put forth her hand.

"It's not much, I admit," she said, Arashi widening his eyes at the gift, "but given the circumstances, I thought it'd be best to go with this."

For a few seconds, Arashi stood silently as he looked back and forth between

Arashi then set one hand on his hip as he scratched the back of his head with the other. "Well… if truth be told, I still don't fully trust you. You know the old saw: once bitten, twice shy. But…" He paused for a moment. "You seem earnest enough when you say you want to change… so I guess it'd be wrong to reject your apology."

"R-Really?!" Kasumi said excitedly.

Nodding, he then reached out to her hand, took one of the bracelets, and tried it on. "I guess this isn't too bad… at least you want to change and make yourself better. I certainly understand why you'd want to do that."

Kasumi giggled as she put on the remaining bracelet, and the two set their wrists together such that the bracelets touched. "Well, then, let bygones be bygones! And, hey, when we get out of here, I'll find you something even better!"

As Kasumi continued her promise of making it up to him even more, Masashi noticed that Arashi, though not looking unhappy, did not look too enthusiastic about this. It made some sense; after all, it was easy to say that bygones were bygones, but it might take time to actually live by those words, and such a reconciliation as this was only the first step.

_Still, it's good that things between them have started to change,_ Masashi thought. _If they keep at it, maybe they'll become fast friends in the future._

After the matter was settled, Arashi told Masashi details on his work. He was almost done with the flares, which were currently stowed in one of this ship's storage rooms. He guessed that he would have been done by tomorrow noon.

"That's good to hear," Masashi said, showing satisfaction at his work. "With your help, we'll have a chance to get out of this place at last."

"Yeah, you get to use your talent to help us!" Kasumi added. "As a phantom thief, I don't see any opportunities to use my skills, since I'm not here for any heists or anything, so we're all lucky to have you!"

"Ah… Well, thanks…"

Arashi sighed as he relaxed his shoulders, and at that moment, Masashi noticed a bit of uncertainty on his face.

"Hey, is there something wrong?" Masashi asked.

"Um, well… Nothing important, really," Arashi said, his tone sounding a little forced. "I'm just thinking about this whole situation… Monokuma trapped us all in here and got four of us killed! I thought that Haruka's death would be the end of that, but… Futaba and Abraham are now dead." He then clenched his fists as he ground his teeth. "It's just so… frustrating that Monokuma's laughing behind our backs! It makes me feel so… _helpless!_ I just want it... to let it out and make this feeling go away."

Masashi said nothing at first, as it was clear that Arashi was beginning to feel doubt about himself and all the progress that he had made to try to overcome his anger. Even though Arashi was aware of the aftermath of his anger, he was liable to forget it, fall back to his old ways, and, worst of all, think about killing.

_In that case, he needs some more encouragement,_ he thought. _He needs to be reminded about why he wants to overcome his anger._

"I understand that. In this situation, it's only natural to feel that way. Who wouldn't?" he replied. "But right now, you have to set that aside. Don't forget, Monokuma's given us another motive, and he wants us to forgo our moral standards and kill for the money. And we're liable to do that if we're not thinking clearly. So it's pretty clear that he wants you to feel angry again."

"Yeah, there's no need for anger if you ask me!" Kasumi added, smiling. "Besides, you have your work to focus on! If you put all your work into it, then our chances of being rescued grow higher, so there's no need to think about Monokuma's bait at all!"

"Oh… When you put it that way, that makes sense," Arashi replied, though still looking unsure, but Masashi figured that it would take some time for him to fully accept his reasoning. "I guess it'd be wrong if I got angry right now…. Sorry that I bothered you with my problem."

"No, no, it's no big deal, really," Masashi said. "And besides, remember all the progress you've made and why you even wanted to change yourself in the first place."

"Um... all right," Arashi replied. "I'll try… I'll try not to let my anger consume me. I won't forget what you've said."

Arashi, nodding profusely as if feeling insecure that his mind might change the very next second, rushed away and ran up the stairs.

"Wow, you sure handled that well," Kasumi said in her ever so gleeful tone.

"You really think so?" Masashi asked.

It was one thing to think that he had done well, but it was another to hear it from another. Though he could do nothing about the money itself, he could at the very least warn the others about what Monokuma wanted them to do. His tiny bit of encouragement, however pitiful it might seem, could be enough to make the others think twice about furthering the killing game.

Kasumi nodded, clapping her hands. "I'm the kind of girl that thinks positively. It may not be all that obvious, but one's mindset affects one's performance, however skilled one may be."

"And I take it that it's something you know full well from experience," he replied.

"Yep! In my heists, even if it seems as if I were backed in a corner," she answered. "I feel no fear at all. Instead, I stay calm and try to find a way out of the situation. And that's why I can stay positive right now. I don't feel angry or anxious about how things are."

Masashi thought her words to be admirable. However immoral her thieving might be, her positive attitude was refreshing to see, and even if her attitude did not do anything in and of itself, it would help him feel more motivated to follow through with his plan. At least, that was what he wanted to say.

But as he opened his mouth to respond, he repeated her response in his head, and this time, he could not but find her words to be odd. It was not her words' meaning that troubled him; instead, it was the tone with which she had spoken them. She had spoken with a blithesome and chirpy tone, but the more he repeated it in his head, the more he felt that there was something fake about it.

_But_ _why._..? _W__hy do I have to feel this doubt?_

It was one thing to doubt Sorao, who had narrowly succeeded in his betrayal. His deeds had been shocking enough to warrant being watchful over him. But it was another thing to doubt Kasumi of all people now. The others had formerly thought about locking her up, and it was he that had convinced them that they needed to learn to trust one another. And up until the third motive, things had been going swimmingly with her, since the others had grown to be less wary of her.

But now it was he that could not stop thinking about the likelihood that Kasumi might be up to something. She was hiding something, and even if that was typical of a phantom thief, the very possibility that she was deceiving him was upsetting. He wished not to doubt her, especially after she had shown that she had changed by reconciling with Arashi. But at the same time, he could not reject the possibility, having already seen the results of being naive.

If he could not trust her now, then what would it take to get him to trust anyone else without having to feel this doubt?

_No... No more of this..._

He must escape this doubt at once.

"I... I feel tired now," he said, his voice shaky. "I need to go to bed."

"Huh? So soon?" Kasumi replied, tilting her head slightly. "I was about to suggest playing a few games together!"

"S-Sorry... but I need some rest. Good night."

And without letting her say anything in response, he rushed out of the room. He went back to his room without stopping, took a short shower, and readied himself for bed.

_I can't be thinking this way..._ he thought as he tucked himself into bed. _I simply need some time for my mind to cool off. Yeah, I only need some time..._

He was imagining things. Kasumi was his friend, and he had listened to her in her declaration that she would never kill a fellow human being. The doubt that he had felt was but a figment of his wild imagination. The heat of the moment had made him briefly forget that Kasumi was a dear friend of his, someone whom he had chosen to trust, and if he had stayed in that room with her any longer, he would have given in and thought earnestly about forsaking that trust.

And it had all been thanks to Sorao that he felt this way. He had betrayed him, and now he was watchful and prone to see monsters where there were none. Thankfully, he knew better now, and so this kind of incident ought not to happen again.

His mind now put at ease, he fell asleep.

* * *

**Hello, ladies and gentlemen! Sorry for my absence, but I wanted to take a break and catch up on a few hobbies of mine.**

**Anyway, we have even more Free Time Events, this time featuring Murphy, Tanjiro, and Haruyuki. I originally thought about going into the murder for this part, but I thought it'd feel too sudden, and I wanted to show off some of the characters one more time.**

**Next time, the long-awaited bloodshed happens, so this means that this is your last chance to guess on which characters you think we shall say goodbye to. It'll be fun to see whether your predictions are on the mark!**


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